As I sidle past the biblical three score years and ten and then some, the sedentary life of everyday moments cocoons me. The daily walks around the garden that morph into 1-2 hours of weeding, pruning, touching, smelling, observing, watching things growing.
Then meals to be prepared, washing to do, occasional bouts of housework.
The shopping.
The daily afternoon walk. Sitting on the deck with a glass of wine as the sun sets. Marvelling at the beauty of this lonely lorikeet as he braves the onslaught of the Noisy Miners to savour the nectar of the Grevillea.
The coast is clear so he tucks in…
Then the enjoyment of reading blogs, commenting/chatting with the blogging community. The days slip seamlessly into weeks and months and suddenly 2 years have rolled by since I was on the road. The routine of every day living in one place has become my way of life.
But my gypsy soul is stirring, nudging me to action. Remembering the excitement of travel, the wonder of discovery. For years I roamed the world, then for 4 years explored Australia. Visited all the major cities, crossed the endless, golden Mitchell grass plains into the outback.
Tramped through the bush and wandered through the verdant rain forests, gazed in wonder at the beauty of West Australian wild flowers spread before me in their carpets of colour. Constant change was my everyday moments.
Those memories are making me restless, tugging at my heart-strings and I’m feeling the urge to roam again.
One place I have not been and the thought of it stirs my imagination. It is in the far west of the New South Wales outback. It is an iconic city steeped in history and stories of a rugged past when pioneers poured into the area in search of riches. The summers are almost unbearably hot. The dust swirls in red clouds coating everything and the winters are bitterly cold. It appeals to my inquisitive nature, I want to see what it is that draws people to this city that in 2015 was declared a heritage city. Yes the whole city is heritage and it is the only city to be honoured with this title. Broken Hill….
“When you think of regional Australia, when you think of mining, when you think of the ethos of Australia, you think of Broken Hill,” Environment Minister Greg Hunt said.
“From Pro Hart to Priscilla to Perilya, it’s a town that covers art and culture and mining and industry and the outback of Australia.
“The silver, the zinc, the incredible resources that have characterised Broken Hill have been the basis upon which so much of Australia has been built.”
So it is with anticipation I start preparing to take to the road again. More in the next post.
Cathy at “Wander Essence” is my inspiration for making preparations. This amazing lady is going to walk the Camino Track next month and her post on her preparation is a great influence to me. Do check it out
Pauline no one can not say you have led a rich and rewarding life as you embrace nature at every turn.. Keep wandering in your garden and sitting with that cool glass of wine of an evening.. Something I often do..
Beautiful photos Pauline.. Enjoy Enjoy ENJOY!… ❤
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Thanks Sue for all your lovely comments. I’m looking forward to our adventure. There will be lots of photos soon. How has your garden survived all the heat you have had this year? I’m wondering what sort of summer we will have this year
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Safe travels P!
🙏
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Thanks Y I’m looking forward to going
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😊
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The allotment has done well despite the heat and the drought.. Hubby attentively watering every morning for two hours solid… back and forth with watering cans.. He totalled it up and its 60 gallons of water ever day .. No wonder he is keeping fitter. LOL.. I hope your Summer is not a scorcher .. And you get rain and not all at once in the same spot like many places have been having.. ❤
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No hose Sue? Or are have you got watering restrictions? During our drought a few years ago we were not allowed to use hoses only water by hand. That is hard work
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The allotments have water tanks at intervals.. No one us supposed to put hoes in there.. But people do hook up generators to pump water out.. Which then drains the tank and others cannot get water as its a cistern system.. So Hubby fills up two two gallon watering cans at a time and walks back and forth.. ( we use a hose on our home garden.. But this year with the drought that has been restricted.. So washing up water has been used alot ) 🙂
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Always some people will abuse the system unfortunately. During 2000 and 2010 when we had the long drought over here and the dams were running dry we had very strict water restrictions and could only use watering cans every second day then only between 4pm and 7pm. So I was using all our grey water and we had the spear pump put in to tap the water table. They were dire days
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Yes you certainly appreciate rain when you don’t have any.. And to say the amount of rain we get in England.. This drought soon started to dry up reservoirs .. So i can sympathise. ❤
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Broken Hill is a fasscinating place. So much to see and experience – like tthe guy who has made a mock up of a mine underneathh his house, the outtdoor museum at Silverton and, my personal favourite, the sculpture park in a fenced area outside of town. The fence keeps out the wikd horses that I found very intimidating – they are huge.
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I’m really looking forward to exploring the area. We are staying a week, I hope that is long enough. I didn’t know about the wild horses I’m a horse lover so I do hope we see some. Are you settling into your new place ok?
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I was there for about a week too though it was some years ago now. The wild horses were on the road out to the desert sculpture park. They were huge!
Thanks for asking about how I am settling in Pauline – so far so good. It’s closer than my old place to good galleries and libraries which is a great plus for me.
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I’m a library fanatic and the libraries on the GC are fantastic, good galleries are a bonus too. Pleased to hear you’re settling in ok
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Ah so you are on the Gold Coast. My oldest son lives in Northern NSW and I have spent quite a bit of time up there. Nice and warm at this time of year but the humidity of summer always drives me south.
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Yes the humidity is hard to put up with. Thank goodness for aircon…
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I’m so envious, Pauline. I didn’t quite make it Carnarvon Gorge and other points out west on my trip. Hopefully next time. Looking forward to hearing more about your itinerary.
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Lots to see out west, but huge distances between places. Carnarvon Gorge is a special place
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We need to plan for a longer trip.
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That is the problem with Australian travel, so much time driving from A to B
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Aha, so you’re off to Broken Hill, Pauline. I’m looking forward to reading about your perspective of it.
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I’m quite excited about it Jane, we go in a couple of weeks time
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I feel as you do Pauline-so contented here in my world with beautiful Nature all around and an occasional glass of wine to enjoy it with. But now and then my spirit pushes me to explore yet another corner of this amazing planet!! Look forward to hearing about your journey. And thanks for sharing your lovely everyday moments!
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You do live in a beautiful area Tina and I love you sharing your photos with us.
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I can so relate to settling in and enjoying the everyday pleasures in our later years, Pauline. I don’t do gardening, but I enjoy walking, writing, reading, and just the simple routines of life. Especially enjoying a glass of wine at the end of the day. I’m excited though that you haven’t abandoned your wandering self and are now called to explore another corner of your world. I look forward to hearing about your excursion to Broken Hill, where “the summers are almost unbearably hot. The dust swirls in red clouds coating everything and the winters are bitterly cold.” I want to go too!! 🙂 I’ll link this to my next call to place on September 27. 🙂
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Well, you never stop, Pauline! Good for you!
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Only go on short jaunts these days Sue
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Yes, but you’re still jaunt ing, m’dear! 💕
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I understand, Pauline, and look forward to reading about your adventures. I like having a place to be content and come home to, but I also love travel and the joy of new (or just beloved) places and people.
janet
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Yes good to go away, but always good to have a home to come back to
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Very true.
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Cathy has certainly got us all restless and inspired Pauline. Good to see you back online with a new and wonderful adventure to supplement the contented lifestyle 😃xx
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Cathy is inspirational and I am looking forward to my adventure. Only a couple of weeks away now
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Woo Hoo! 🙂 🙂
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👍
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It is so easy to slip into a routine and be content with life which passes by at an alarming speed I have to say! Broken Hill was my first trip away on my own when I visited Australia for the first time in 1998. December and hot. So I know about those dusty days. I shall look forward to your trip and your impressions of this unusual place. And who knows, I may well get the wanderlust urge again myself one day, but for now I am content with the everyday life (well maybe NOT the housework). 😀
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December would be a very uncomfortable time to visit BH. Hoping the weather is not too hot or cold when we are there. Just admit I posed the vacuum for the photo, it doesn’t come out of the cupboard very often….
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Haha…
Yes the temperature was around 40C and then a week later I landed in London at 06:30 and the temperature was -7C. What a shocker!
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Real climate shock. We had torrential rain last night and it is still raining
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I can relate to your everyday moments,Pauline. Thank you for sharing your lovely photos and everyday moments! 🙂
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Always housework and shopping to do everyday
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Now you’ve got me curious about Broken Hill! I love your curious spirit and share that with you. Your everyday life looks idyllic–gardening, wine… I love it! I have missed my garden since we moved to a condo, but there are always parks. 🙂 I’m excited to see Broken Hill through your eyes, Pauline!
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I would really miss having a garden Patti, so we are staying here as long as we can
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Lovely everyday moments!
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Thank you I appreciate you leaving a comment
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Will there be more wallabies?
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I’ll let you know if I see one….
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OH! . . . That would not be necessary! . . . Although, I know I will be the first to hear about it.
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Love your everyday moments -from
Nature to shopping!
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Thanks Yvette loved to hear from you
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Thanks for this peek into your life. Broken Hill. I’ve not been but I’ve always been interested to know about this. The preparation and planning are all fun parts of the trip. I hope the trip goes well. There is a serious drought at the moment and that brings all sorts of additional challenges.
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Yes the drought is devastating and the outback is going to be so different to the last time I was therein 2010 when they were having a good season with plenty of feed. Even enough grass to make hay
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Woohoo, off you go!
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I’m looking forward to it now and getting excited…
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This will be a wonderful adventure! Safe travels.
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Thank you
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Broken Hill to my mind is the most unique of all Australian towns. Fabulous architecture and the rather crazy mix of art and mining. So much to see you’ll need a week and don’t miss Bell’s Milk Bar. And Silverton of course.
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Yes we will be there a week, I’m thinking we may need longer! I’ve heard of Bell’s milk bar and is certainly on my list. When were you last there?
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Too long ago 2012.
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