I must admit I didn't remember that it was Winnie the Pooh who said "Spring has sprung, the grass has rizz, I wonder where them birdies is"? Well I guess it was actually A. A. Milne who wrote it but ....
Melbourne is bursting with new colour, buds, green shoots, baby birds and all that Spring brings. It always amazes me how quickly nature responds to the 1st September!
Melbourne is bursting with new colour, buds, green shoots, baby birds and all that Spring brings. It always amazes me how quickly nature responds to the 1st September!
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| Floral borders bursting with (overexposed) colour |
Walking through the Fitzroy Gardens the other morning I was thrilled to come across a family of ducks. I love that 'father' is doing the patrol work bringing up the rear. He was very protective.
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| Mother Duck said "Quack, quack, quack, quack" |
The ducklings were so fluffy and cute. It put a spring (ha ha) in my step as I enjoyed my 'constitutional'. And then I came upon Mother Magpie with her two youngsters. It really was a busy morning with the 'early birds catching the worms'.
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| Mother Maggie wouldn't let me get any closer to her two youngsters |
Commonly known as Captain Cook's Cottage it was built in Great Ayton, North Yorkshire in 1755 by the parents of our most famed explorer who was the first European to land on the eastern shores of Australia. In 1933 it was sold to Russell Grimwade - a notable Melbourne businessman and philanthropist - for £800 (the highest offer in the UK was £300). The cottage was then deconstructed and shipped to Melbourne and reconstructed brick by brick. Grimwade donated the house in 1934 to the people of Victoria to celebrate the centenary of the settlement of Melbourne. Not surprisingly it's a very popular port of call on the tourist beat.
Did Captain Cook actually lived there as a child? The question still arises. It's such a tiny cottage one wonders how a family with eight children could have done so. But things were different then. Certainly there were no McMansion's for farm labourers in those days.
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| Captain Cook 'at home' |
Bowen Cottage client comment this week: It's so convenient!
Jan - I love these Richmond Rambles. We've lived in Richmond for years and recognise the quirky icons, daily happenings, intriguing new things and funny old sights - but your blog captures them all in the most charming, often amusing, delightful way that they always put a smile on my face. People must recognise you now, sleuthing away, taking notes, asking questions, reminding us to take a moment to observe the world around us. Thanks! margaret
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