I'm loving this city!
Showing posts with label city. Show all posts
Showing posts with label city. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 4, 2014
Sunday, December 30, 2012
A couple of days in Sydney (with tons of photos)
I've been busy and around since I got here, but I'll try to write down a little track log and post some photos. Please note that I stuffed myself three times already today, so there's not much blood left in my brain.
Here goes!
My mate K picked me up from the airport and took me to his place. It's a lovely apartment situated halfway down a staircase in North Sydney, overlooking the bay. A couple of big tree branches, home to at least half a dozen kinds of parrots, blocks a bit of the view, but no one seems to mind.
We take the bus into the City, over the Coat Hanger, and meet up with M, a friend's friend who has the keys to the apartment. We're running a bit late, but we have a short drink at the Opera Bar. We grab some lunch (I can only remember nibbling on some onion rings - there was so much food in between) and head off to Darling Harbour for a drink or two.
On day two we head off to Spit Bridge (funny, I know) and take the scenic walk to Manly Beach. It's a long walk, but the views are so worth it. It takes us about 2.5h to cross the 10km stretch. Two swims, one close accident and a wave-catching-run into a lady in the shallow, and we're off to lunch. I decided to skip my visit to the City, so we went back to K's place and lay on the couch like a couple of walruses.
It took me a while to find R & B's place the next day, but after I left my stuff and took a shower, I was on my way back into the City to meet up with M & I. They took me around the Darling Harbour, to the Opera house and into the Royal Botanical Gardens. Drinks and food.
Today I went to Parramatta, with the first Governor's House and the oldest cemetery in Australia. A road trip to the Featherdale Wildlife Park for some koala, echidna and wallaby cuddling. Drinks and lunch at an Irish place, then a short visit to M & I's place and a dinner at an Italian restaurant. Full up to my teeth, but we still had dessert.
I just went through all the photos and realised there's tones. Here's a portion of those, in no specific order. And I'm off to bed, since R & B are flying in tomorrow early morning.
Strike that - today early morning.
Monday, December 17, 2012
Mooro/Goomap
As I started writing a bit about Australia, as well as a bit about Aborigines, I thought it might be good to write a tiny bit about Perth.*
Even though it's not considered the favourite city amongst Australians (and those who move to Australia), I actually think it's quite nice. Maybe my initial unfamiliarity is to blame, but I like the fact that it's big enough and small enough at the same time. You can find everything you need and still not have your toes stepped on by five million people. There's concerts all the time and it's not being skipped over (which is often the case with Zagreb), and at the same time it's cozy enough to have this laid back vibe.
Anyway, Perth got its name from the home of Sir George Murray. He was born in Perth, Scotland, and was the Colonial Secretary who at that time represented Perth Shires in the House of Commons. It was the colony's first Governor, James Stirling, who later wanted to honour this man and thus named the city after his hometown.
The city's Aboriginal name is Mooro or Goomap. Before the Europeans colonised the area (in the 19th century), it had been inhabited by the Whadjuk Noongar people for over 40,000 years, according to evidence by archaeological findings on the Upper Swan River. These Aborigines occupied the southwest corner of Western Australia, living as hunter-gatherers. The wetlands on the Swan Coastal Plain were particularly important to them, both spiritually, featuring in local mythology, and as a source of food. Rottnest, Carnac and Garden Islands were also important to the Noongar. About 5,000 years ago the sea levels were low enough that they could walk to the limestone outcrops.
The area where Perth now stands was called Boorloo by the Aboriginals living there at the time of their first contact with Europeans in 1827. Boorloo formed part of Mooro, the tribal lands of the Yellagonga. It is one of several groups based around the Swan River and known collectively as the Whadjuk. The Whadjuk were part of a larger group of thirteen or more tribes which formed the south west socio-linguistic block known as the Noongar (meaning "the people" in their language), also sometimes called the Bibbulmun.
The first documented European sighting of the region was made by the Dutch Captain Willem de Vlamingh and his crew on 10 January 1697. Subsequent sightings between this date and 1829 were made by other Europeans, but as in the case of the sighting and observations made by Vlamingh, the area was considered to be inhospitable and unsuitable for the agriculture which would be needed to sustain a settlement (even though the present-day city lies on the mouth of the Swan river, close to the Indian Ocean and offering incredible protection and connection).
Although the British Army had established a base at King George Sound (later Albany) on the south coast of western Australia in 1826 in response to rumours that the area would be annexed by France, Perth was the first full-scale settlement by Europeans in the western third of the continent. The British colony would be officially designated Western Australia in 1832, but was known informally for many years as the Swan River Colony, after the area's major watercourse.
On 4 June 1829, newly arriving British colonists had their first view of the mainland, and Western Australia's Foundation Day has since been recognised by a public holiday on the first Monday in June each year. Captain James Stirling, aboard the Parmelia, said that Perth was "as beautiful as anything of this kind I had ever witnessed". On 12 August that year, Helen Dance, wife of the captain of the second ship, Sulphur, cut down a tree to mark the founding of the town.
It is clear that Stirling had already selected the name Perth for the capital well before the town was proclaimed, as his proclamation of the colony, read in Fremantle on 18 June 1829, ended "given under my hand and Seal at Perth this 18th Day of June 1829" by James Stirling Lieutenant Governor. The only contemporary information on the source of the name comes from Fremantle's diary entry for 12 August, which records that they "named the town Perth according to the wishes of Sir George Murray".
Beginning in 1831, hostile encounters (classic...) between the British settlers and the Noongar people – both large-scale land users with conflicting land value systems – increased considerably as the colony grew. This violent phase of the region's history culminated in a series of events in which the British overcame the indigenous people, including the execution of the Whadjuk elder Midgegooroo, the death of his son Yagan in 1833, and the Battle of Pinjarra (south of Perth) in 1834.
By 1843, when Yellagonga died, his people had begun to disintegrate after having been dispossessed of the land around the main settlement area of Perth. They retreated to the swamps and lakes north of the settlement area including Third Swamp, known to them as Boodjamooling. Boodjamooling continued to be a main camp-site for the remaining Noongar people in the Perth region, and was also used by travellers, itinerants and homeless people. By the gold-rush days of the 1890s, they were joined by miners who were en-route to the Goldfields.
In 1850, Western Australia was opened to convicts at the request of farming and business people looking for cheap labour. Queen Victoria announced the city status of Perth in 1856. Australians are still known as Cons (Convicts) to lots of people around the World (especially Poms, as the Aussies refer to the British).
Even though it's not considered the favourite city amongst Australians (and those who move to Australia), I actually think it's quite nice. Maybe my initial unfamiliarity is to blame, but I like the fact that it's big enough and small enough at the same time. You can find everything you need and still not have your toes stepped on by five million people. There's concerts all the time and it's not being skipped over (which is often the case with Zagreb), and at the same time it's cozy enough to have this laid back vibe.
Anyway, Perth got its name from the home of Sir George Murray. He was born in Perth, Scotland, and was the Colonial Secretary who at that time represented Perth Shires in the House of Commons. It was the colony's first Governor, James Stirling, who later wanted to honour this man and thus named the city after his hometown.
The city's Aboriginal name is Mooro or Goomap. Before the Europeans colonised the area (in the 19th century), it had been inhabited by the Whadjuk Noongar people for over 40,000 years, according to evidence by archaeological findings on the Upper Swan River. These Aborigines occupied the southwest corner of Western Australia, living as hunter-gatherers. The wetlands on the Swan Coastal Plain were particularly important to them, both spiritually, featuring in local mythology, and as a source of food. Rottnest, Carnac and Garden Islands were also important to the Noongar. About 5,000 years ago the sea levels were low enough that they could walk to the limestone outcrops.
The area where Perth now stands was called Boorloo by the Aboriginals living there at the time of their first contact with Europeans in 1827. Boorloo formed part of Mooro, the tribal lands of the Yellagonga. It is one of several groups based around the Swan River and known collectively as the Whadjuk. The Whadjuk were part of a larger group of thirteen or more tribes which formed the south west socio-linguistic block known as the Noongar (meaning "the people" in their language), also sometimes called the Bibbulmun.
The first documented European sighting of the region was made by the Dutch Captain Willem de Vlamingh and his crew on 10 January 1697. Subsequent sightings between this date and 1829 were made by other Europeans, but as in the case of the sighting and observations made by Vlamingh, the area was considered to be inhospitable and unsuitable for the agriculture which would be needed to sustain a settlement (even though the present-day city lies on the mouth of the Swan river, close to the Indian Ocean and offering incredible protection and connection).
Although the British Army had established a base at King George Sound (later Albany) on the south coast of western Australia in 1826 in response to rumours that the area would be annexed by France, Perth was the first full-scale settlement by Europeans in the western third of the continent. The British colony would be officially designated Western Australia in 1832, but was known informally for many years as the Swan River Colony, after the area's major watercourse.
On 4 June 1829, newly arriving British colonists had their first view of the mainland, and Western Australia's Foundation Day has since been recognised by a public holiday on the first Monday in June each year. Captain James Stirling, aboard the Parmelia, said that Perth was "as beautiful as anything of this kind I had ever witnessed". On 12 August that year, Helen Dance, wife of the captain of the second ship, Sulphur, cut down a tree to mark the founding of the town.
It is clear that Stirling had already selected the name Perth for the capital well before the town was proclaimed, as his proclamation of the colony, read in Fremantle on 18 June 1829, ended "given under my hand and Seal at Perth this 18th Day of June 1829" by James Stirling Lieutenant Governor. The only contemporary information on the source of the name comes from Fremantle's diary entry for 12 August, which records that they "named the town Perth according to the wishes of Sir George Murray".
Beginning in 1831, hostile encounters (classic...) between the British settlers and the Noongar people – both large-scale land users with conflicting land value systems – increased considerably as the colony grew. This violent phase of the region's history culminated in a series of events in which the British overcame the indigenous people, including the execution of the Whadjuk elder Midgegooroo, the death of his son Yagan in 1833, and the Battle of Pinjarra (south of Perth) in 1834.
By 1843, when Yellagonga died, his people had begun to disintegrate after having been dispossessed of the land around the main settlement area of Perth. They retreated to the swamps and lakes north of the settlement area including Third Swamp, known to them as Boodjamooling. Boodjamooling continued to be a main camp-site for the remaining Noongar people in the Perth region, and was also used by travellers, itinerants and homeless people. By the gold-rush days of the 1890s, they were joined by miners who were en-route to the Goldfields.
In 1850, Western Australia was opened to convicts at the request of farming and business people looking for cheap labour. Queen Victoria announced the city status of Perth in 1856. Australians are still known as Cons (Convicts) to lots of people around the World (especially Poms, as the Aussies refer to the British).
On 19 September 2006, the Federal Court of Australia brought down a judgment recognising Noongar native title over the Perth metropolitan area, in the case of Bennell vs. State of Western Australia [2006] FCA 1243.
- live on the area
- access the area for traditional purposes, like camping or to do ceremonies
- visit and protect important places and sites
- hunt, fish and gather food or traditional resources like water, wood and ochre
- teach law and custom on country.
Perth (pronounced as /pɜrθ/, for those who can handle the IPA) is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia, with an estimated population of 1.83 million living in the Perth metropolitan area (more on Perth's population in future posts).
The first areas settled were on the Swan River, with the city's central business district and port (Fremantle) both still located on the river. As Fremantle was the first landfall in Australia for many migrant ships coming from Europe in the 1950s and 1960s, Perth started to experience a diverse influx of people, which included Italians, Greeks, Dutch, Germans, Croats, and many others (but I'll write more about that later).
The city's population increased substantially as a result of the Western Australian gold rushes in the late 19th century, largely as a result of emigration from the eastern colonies of Australia. During Australia's involvement in World War II, Fremantle served as a base for submarines operating in the Pacific Theatre. An influx of immigrants following the conclusion of the war was followed by a surge in economic activity as a result of several mining booms in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, with Perth becoming the regional headquarters for a number of mining operations located around the state. As part of Perth's role as the capital of Western Australia, the state's Parliament and Supreme Court are located within the city, as well as Government House, the residence of the Governor of Western Australia.
Perth became known worldwide as the "City of Light" when city residents lit their house lights and streetlights as American astronaut John Glenn passed overhead while orbiting the earth on Friendship 7 in 1962. The city repeated the act as Glenn passed overhead on the Space Shuttle in 1998. Perth came 9th in the Economist Intelligence Unit's August 2012 list of the world's most liveable cities.
The city's population increased substantially as a result of the Western Australian gold rushes in the late 19th century, largely as a result of emigration from the eastern colonies of Australia. During Australia's involvement in World War II, Fremantle served as a base for submarines operating in the Pacific Theatre. An influx of immigrants following the conclusion of the war was followed by a surge in economic activity as a result of several mining booms in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, with Perth becoming the regional headquarters for a number of mining operations located around the state. As part of Perth's role as the capital of Western Australia, the state's Parliament and Supreme Court are located within the city, as well as Government House, the residence of the Governor of Western Australia.
Perth became known worldwide as the "City of Light" when city residents lit their house lights and streetlights as American astronaut John Glenn passed overhead while orbiting the earth on Friendship 7 in 1962. The city repeated the act as Glenn passed overhead on the Space Shuttle in 1998. Perth came 9th in the Economist Intelligence Unit's August 2012 list of the world's most liveable cities.
*Info and photo taken from the Internet...
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Traffic in Perth
Riding the train in Perth is probably the same as riding the train in any other bigger city out there. I can't tell you much about NYC and I can definitely tell you it's nothing like Mumbai, but you get the idea.
I'm not sure whether it's the busy lifestyle or the relaxing way of life that makes it so, but people here actually use the time they spend being driver back and forth. Be it reading, updating their correspondence or simply playing on their iPads.
School kids - who you can easily notice, since they wear uniforms) - sit on the floor, each playing on their phone, giggling and hoping no one's going to disturb them in their fun. Sometimes it's weird and annoying, but I'd rather go with that than paranoid people flicking their eyes and looking for any sign of trouble. That just makes me edgy.
Another thing which is not typical for Perth only is the fact that everyone likes to cram up right at the door, while the middle part is right there - so close and yet so far. I just rode next to a guy who kept bumping me with his backpack, obviously not being aware by its size and weight. But that happens a lot.
Even though the people are usually quite decent on the train, I somehow have the feeling that they're still lacking some awareness regarding others. A guy who's on the phone isn't gonna give a crap about the guy who's crossing the bridge on a bike, even though they have the same right to be there.
Pedestrians have the right to cross the street in theory only, so you have to look in seven directions while crossing the street. It's really weird to see people care about certain stuff as much, and not care at all about other at all. It makes me think...
I'm not sure whether it's the busy lifestyle or the relaxing way of life that makes it so, but people here actually use the time they spend being driver back and forth. Be it reading, updating their correspondence or simply playing on their iPads.
School kids - who you can easily notice, since they wear uniforms) - sit on the floor, each playing on their phone, giggling and hoping no one's going to disturb them in their fun. Sometimes it's weird and annoying, but I'd rather go with that than paranoid people flicking their eyes and looking for any sign of trouble. That just makes me edgy.
Another thing which is not typical for Perth only is the fact that everyone likes to cram up right at the door, while the middle part is right there - so close and yet so far. I just rode next to a guy who kept bumping me with his backpack, obviously not being aware by its size and weight. But that happens a lot.
Even though the people are usually quite decent on the train, I somehow have the feeling that they're still lacking some awareness regarding others. A guy who's on the phone isn't gonna give a crap about the guy who's crossing the bridge on a bike, even though they have the same right to be there.
Pedestrians have the right to cross the street in theory only, so you have to look in seven directions while crossing the street. It's really weird to see people care about certain stuff as much, and not care at all about other at all. It makes me think...
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| Perth CBD from Claisebrook Station, where I catch the train to go home from work |
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Graham Farmer Freeway Bridge with Perth CBD in the background;
taken from Claisebrook Station after work today
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