The next morning when we got up to a beautiful blue sky with hardly any signs of clouds or rain. The forecast was -1 to 8 degrees C in Hobart with rain clouds. The morning being this clear we dashed off for breakfast place by the atrium at Henry Jones, its called the IXL Jam Cafe. Yummy brekky but s-l-o-w as ever. We had time to kill so that wasn’t really a problem. Soon we dashed off yet again to Mt Wellington before the clouds could cover it. Clear as a day, we were meandering up the the mountain as we spotted a little cloud gathering by from the South west side. Snow, little ice on the road but almost no fog! Yay! Big difference to the previous drive. We parked and got out and the next two hours went by in a moments blink. The view from up the top of Mt Wellington on a clear day is staggeringly beautiful. We are so lucky to be a part of such a picturesque landscape. I took lots of photos as did D and the shot little walks up and down then different paths… it was freezing cold but so worth it.
Continue reading ‘Mt Wellington, Salamanca Markets and Richmond’
Here is a little break from all the Hobart talk…
Nearly two years ago, on vacation on the beautiful Island of Corsica, I started to write an iPhoto plugin that was able to automate all manual steps needed to attach a picture to a Gmail message. A few weeks later I gave it to my friends. From their needs and ideas grew Mailplane: A full fledged mail client for Google Mail and Mac OS X.
How about that! Born in France, inspired by a vacation in Corsica. Being struck by an idea that really works when you are on holidays is something to remember. I kinda know the feeling as i get a lot of design inspirations when travelling. Its also because the mind is set aside from the daily drivel. So, what really is MailPlane? Read on.
Continue reading ‘MailPlane 2 for Gmail users’
Mt Wellington conquest was a great adventure and a drive to remember. Kudos to D’s driving. I couldn’t have done it myself! We were now descending the mountain and heading down to The Henry Jones Art Hotel. Meant to be THE number one hotel to stay in Hobart. The staff were polite and very hospitable. We checked in to our Deluxe Spa Room with amazing view of Victoria Dock where you could watch the trawlers laden with the days catch slip into the harbour and with a view of the snow capped Mt Wellington in the backdrop. Amazing set up. Huge plush rooms with massive king size bed, surrounded with art in every room and corridors of the Henry Jones hotel with original walls of stone and timber trusses, columns and beams. It has a Kohler Elliptical double spa with ultra modern bathrooms like a glass prism with heated floors that feel so comfortable to step on. Above all a service of true distinction. You have to be there to experience it. I cannot recommended this place enough if you are in Hobart…
Continue reading ‘Henry Jones Art Hotel’
We caught a fleeting glance of Hobart on a Friday afternoon as we drove up past the mall through Davie St. Not knowing the right place to veer off for Fern Tree — a small hill-top suburb on the way to Mt Wellington we landed up on the Highway to Huon Valley…. oh no!!! There was no turning bay in sight ever since we missed the first one which came up all too quick… there wasn’t a choice… meandering through Mt Nelson and the valleys we came up to Kingston briefly and then did a round about to come back to the turn off to Fern Tree. Ahhhhhh, Finally! Mt Wellington here we come.
Continue reading ‘Road kerfuffle to Mt Wellington - Take 2′
Our flight was early in the morning so we decided to drive in to the long term car park and then take the shuttle to the airport. After going through security and coffee and a quick bite from Aromas we headed down to the gate but our Virgin Blue flight was a little delayed. So we decided to sit at a different gate with a view of planes taking off. Soon we were boarding and sooner still we were descending over the Tasman Sea. It was a little cloudy but once we went past the clouds the view of Bruny Island and the little hidden coves was amazing.
Continue reading ‘Hobart here we come’
A few days have passed by… and silence means busy having good time… as my parents always say…. no news is always good news — thats an old Indian phrase but truly… its been so much fun going back to the stunningly beautiful dreamy Apple Isle…. Oh how I love Tasmania… The food, the people, the harmony of people living there with nature, the tidiness, the colours, the hearty food, did I mention food twice?… it has it all. Considering we were only there for three nights and four days even then we did a lot and had a blast. If you haven’t visited the gorgeous Apple Isle its about times to put this on your to do list. And it won’t disappoint you. I’ll get writing about our little sojourn soon, so do visit back.
Continue reading ‘Back from Tasmania’
Yes after a long five year break. Tasmania here we come. Its going to be around 8 degrees when we land and roughly 3 degrees C at night. Yes!! Bring it on. Paris was colder when we were there, 3 degrees should be alright! 
Photo Credit: Alexwise
Kylie took us around Southport right up to the spit with little hidden coves off the main land. We even spotted the floating chapel and then walked around the marina till we came back to Palazzo Versace for our very sumptuously opulent dinner. Decadent it was. Do not miss Vanitas Restaurant if you are about Gold Coast. Sitting by the waterfront with a gentle cool breeze on our back under a jet black starry sky does sum up a fine dining experience. You have to be there to experience it. The main course is about $40 per person. The night rolled on by too quick.
Next morning even though we had plans for Mt Tambourine we gave it a miss hoping that will make us come back for a visit soon. We were a bit short of time and I was keen on Burleigh Heads and to check out both Oskars and Mermaids. Unfortunately there was time only for one. Mermaids it was. Great view of the Gold coast from this waterfront Restaurant. The food very average here though or maybe we were expecting better having had the nice Vanitas experience the previous night. The Jetstar on board magazine had pointed out as this being a must visit location as surfers go right past your table and the food being palatable, well the food for me was a bit of a let down but the view was gorgeous. And yes surfers do go right past your desk. Tick on that one
We caught up with Kylie for lunch and then headed down to Coolangatta and then to Danger Bay at Tweed Heads before we went back to the airport. It was all coming to an end but it was fun filled and quite a welcome change from the freezing Sydney weather. I’m not biased clearly. I have said it before and I will yet again. Queensland is beautiful. Fascinating! Stunning! No wonder they say “its beautiful one day and perfect the next“
The sunset views from the Q1 tower were really amazing. I was really annoyed that I didn’t bring my tripod along for some good photography. And having come in on a day with clear blue skies it certainly helped see the expanse of the coast much more clearly. They say on a very clear day one could see as far down as Byron Bay. After much deliberation we gave the Buffet at Palazzo Versace a miss for that night and headed to Conrad Jupiters for a scrumptious Buffet. It had been a long and exciting day.
Next day we caught up with our friend Kylie, it has been a while we saw her since she moved up to Gold Coast for good. Sea world was on the cards. That Entertainment book is amazing — a real money saver. In the two months of using the 2008/2009 book we have saved a good $200.00 or more. You guessed it, the book had discount tickets to Sea World. We watched the Water-ski show, followed by the visitation of the Polar bears, reef fish pool. I touched a few star fish… pretty solid but the Sea Urchins seemed slimy… and then onto the Dolphin show and of course the ride on the Bermuda Triangle. Oh it was hilarious — again a must do here… the effects inside the faux mountain are really good. The poor kid sitting in front of me yelled his heart out in scare that he’d be picked up by aliens garbling machine talk in the semi-opaque darkness of the Bermuda Triangle. 
And us three screaming banshees sitting right behind didn’t instil much confidence in him. In hind site we should have done another round of the Bermuda Triangle. The final jaunt is really good, the boat comes off a 60 degrees incline on tracks that are submerged in water and it makes a splashing final entry before letting the Berumda explorers off — oh the joy and screaming, we were lucky to escape unharmed from Bermuda. Whoever said horse play is bad for your spirit.
Continue reading ‘Sea World Experience’
Little later we headed down the foyer and began to promenade the streets of Gold Coast and came up to Q1 in Surfers Pradise — the tallest residential structure in the world. Q1 stands for Queensland number 1. Across the road from this gigantic tower is The Watermark Hotel. The colours of the exterior walls are really nice and catches the designers eye! Very elegant use of colour palette. Pastel, soothing yet catchy with a great balance of the colour wheel. I’ve to say the person that choose these colours obviously understands the concept of the harmonious colours very well. Couldn’t help myself, took a few photos as one does
In a few seconds we were flying up the Q1 like a bullet off the musket of a long barrelled smoking gun. The staff at the reception explained a few things about the Q1 Tower unlike the generally less-friendly staff at Sydney’s AMP tower. The lower observation deck on the Q1 is on level 77. About 320 meters from the ground floor. The lift took less 50 seconds to get up there! Some crafty piece of engineering that is. And the Queenslanders are proud of it the staff did mention it would take about 48 seconds to reach up there and it certainly wasn’t a second longer. No ear popping, no floatiness or jerky ride. Once out of the lift you are greeted again by the staff at the lower observation deck and then the view engulfs you like wild bush-fire. We lost count of time looking at the views from every possible angle, photographing, and walking through the upper observation desk where the tower is open to the elements of nature. Scary, fun, enthralling!
Continue reading ‘Experiencing the Q1′
Apart from being Jeans for Genes day, the 1st of August, beginning of the month and another lovely month of chilly winter in Sydney it was also the day I took off to the famous Gold Coast. Since this was my first time up there I was really wide eyed and looking forward to my experience of the lovely Gold Coast. A long weekend is never really enough to see a place but we squeezed what we could to make this a good short trip and it truly was.
Continue reading ‘Off to Gold Coast’
MacLoc is a brilliant little app that does a simple thing in style — it locks your screen. And yes there are a 101 ways of doing this without getting yet another app on your macintosh free or otherwise(e.g.: Butler, DeskShade, Keychain, Scripts…) but I like the look of the icon — clean and crisp and happy to click lock my screen with MacLoc when I walk out for a coffee or a much needed break.
Continue reading ‘MacLoc your Mac’
I have been an Adobe Lightroom fan since the early days and having dabbled in it a bit I could tell the power this piece of software had over others in the market — Capture One, iPhoto, iView MediaPro and so on. Still remember buying the first version before I headed to Perth for a holiday last year and then came version 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 and 1.4 all with progressive changes until beta 2 landed on the threshold with some very promising additions. Since using beta 2 of the program I have found it IMPOSSIBLE to go back to Lighroom version 1.x so I literally stuck with it right until yesterday when Lightroom version 2 was released! I was quick to buy the upgrade after a quick look at Matt and Scott’s review and my own experience of working through Lightroom beta 2.
Continue reading ‘Adobe Lightroom 2.0′
I am going to start this post of by quoting a few things of Andrew Denton’s Elders on ABC. Much of what I am going to say is actually better summarised in those quotes and having watched Andrew interview Bob Hawke left me more than just inspired. The simplicity of the chat, the truthfulness and the love for honest human feelings expressed juxtaposed with pauses and deep silence and reminiscence of yesteryears warmed the inner cockles of my heart. It is very hard to surmise these feelings in a post however long it may be. If you watched this interview you’re probably in agreement but if you haven’t you could still catch the abbreviated videos online. Remarkable honest and touching interview. Brilliant work there Andrew.
Continue reading ‘Elders With Andrew Denton: Bob Hawke’
It was cold and windy and about 3 degree C when we got into Paris. It was a little bit cloudy. We have had an almost 24 hours flight from Sydney into Charles de Gaulle. We checked in had a showed chucked our bags and went out for a walk in the brisk fresh air of Tour de Eiffel. Moments later I took this shot as we reached the base of the famous Eiffel Tower. Cloudy days allow for a greater range of photography and once shot I applied some tint and hue adjustments in Photoshop to bring out the contrast between the Eiffel Tower and the afternoon clouds in the background. You can download and use it as your desktop wallpaper.
