Our Other Blog: Two Sisters and Two Points of View
by Taswegian1957 & Human59
Places I’ve lived, places I’ve been to, maybe even some places I would like to go to.
I’ve chosen some photos of some large cities, Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. Densely populated cities with highrise buildings may be interesting places to photograph but I would not care to live in one.
“You can’t eat scenery.” someone said to me once. I think we had been remarking on the lovely views from a house we’d been looking at. As a practical person I know that’s true but I do like to live in appealing surroundings. Tasmania is a state with some sensational scenery which is why many people from the other states choose to make their home here. The Huon Valley, where I live, is one of the prettiest parts of Tasmania.
I never get tired of looking at the views of the Huon River. Sometimes it’s mirror smooth, sometimes it’s grey and cold looking.
Tasmania was a huge apple producer until the 1970s and there are old packing sheds and pickers huts dotted here and there. There are still orchards although many growers have changed to cherries now.
When I used to work in Hobart I would travel to and from Geeveston on the bus, a trip of over an hour but I never got tired of the views. I imagined all the tourists who would be paying good money to see views that I saw nearly every day.
Occasionally in winter, there may be a heavy snowfall. Often I want to say to the driver, “Stop the bus!” so I can take photos but of course I can’t do that so I sometimes try to snap a few out of the window.
I don’t actually have much of a view from my house. I can see the road and a row of tall gum trees, not the water or the hills or fields but the views are all around me so I don’t really mind.
As an island state with a river running through it, Singapore has a lot of bridges, some old, some new and some inside shopping malls.
As I used my most recent street photos for Sonofabeach96’s Which Way Challenge I’m delving into the far past for these old ones. They were taken in 1990 on our overseas trip. I have many more but a lot of that trip was photographed on slide film and I haven’t scanned very many. One day I must finish doing that.
The first one is more of a trail. Newly married couples would come to this spot to tie a ribbon to one of the trees for good luck. We saw it on a guided tour. They probably take selfies there now if it’s still done.
We only had a day and a half in Irkutsk but it was fine sunny winter weather. These were some of my favourite photos from the trip because I liked the architecture and the light was just right that day. I probably took these photos with my Pentax MG or possibly one of our Zenit’s.
Here are a couple of more recent photos.
We have a lot of rivers in Tasmania, so many that much of our power comes from hydro-electric power plants.
It was the proposed damming of a river, the Franklin, in the southwest of the state that led to the blockade of the river in the summer of 1982-83. It is quite an involved story starting further back when the Hydro-Electric Commission (HEC) built a dam which caused the flooding of Lake Pedder, a renowned beauty spot, in 1972.
When the state government of the day proposed to dam the Franklin River the newly formed Tasmanian Wilderness Society began their campaign to save it. It’s a long story that has more to do with politics than with rivers but it is interesting reading so I’ll include a link to an article by Professor Clive Hamilton who tells the story much better than I can.
Below is Peter Dombrovskis famous photo taken on the Franklin and used by the Tasmanian Wilderness Society to publicise the issue.
By National Library of Australia nla.pic-an6631500-v, Fair use, Link
I do remember the blockade. We were still living in South Australia and every night the news would have stories sent from this tiny place, Strahan, that we had never heard of before then. Many celebrities, Australian and international including Sir Yehudi Menuhin, Barry Humphries, Eartha Kitt, Dick Smith, and David Bellamy took part in the blockade beside ordinary people from every state in Australia. David and I watched the news and cheered for the blockaders many of whom were arrested and when they refused to keep away from the river as part of their bail conditions were removed to jail in Hobart.
In the end, a Federal Labor government was elected in early 1983 and one of their first acts was to stop the dam from being built.
When we first visited Strahan many years later I learned at the visitor centre how the whole issue had divided families. To this day there are still people who believe that dam should have been built but the Franklin is still a wild river. I’ve never seen it but I’m happy knowing it is there. I have cruised on the Gordon River which flows into it. The point where the two rivers join was one of the proposed sites for the dam.
I love walking the streets looking at old or interesting houses I love to photograph them too and I hope their owners don’t mind me sharing these pictures. I don’t photograph local houses as much because it seems a bit cheeky. I know I would think it odd if some random person were standing outside my house taking photographs. Although, if they came and asked me if they could photograph my house for their blog I’d probably say yes.
These old houses are in North Hobart. I like the colour and style of them very much.
Heading back into Hobart, these apartments at the end of Salamanca Place are in a converted grain silo.
If we walk up to Princes park or climb Kelly’s Steps we come to Battery Point.
These houses on Arthur’s Circus in Battery Point are some of the oldest homes in Hobart and are frequently photographed by tourists.
In nearby Sandy Bay, there are many interesting and expensive houses and apartments. This is one that I could not resist photographing because I love this style of building.
