Gardens and their people - David and Hannah

I’ve been on a mission to find all the little street libraries in my neighbourhood and so it was that I discovered David and Hannah on one of those glorious sunny, blue sky Melbourne winter days. There were no clouds in the sky today but the silver lining of lockdown #2 is that one of the essential reasons we can leave the house is to exercise. I just happen to take my camera with me for my daily walks. David just happened to be in his shed making a second little street library box when we stopped to check the selection at 21 Tower Ave, Alphington.

Each little library has its own style, personality and genre. David’s has very high brow and meaty content but also a sense of humour with the roll of ‘Emergency’ loo paper, which in these times is good to know. I didn’t see any romance or light and fluffy here. I’ll give you a link to other libraries with other genre’s soon, although maybe the the library being built will offer a different selection.

David said the Street Library has been up for about 6 months and he runs it with Hannah. We roused Hannah from a snooze in the sun to come and say hello. She’s a 14 year old German Shepherd. David and Hannah’s Street Library is registered and if you want to find out if there’s one near you, you can search on the site. https://streetlibrary.org.au/ . There are other, unregistered libraries that choose not to register and I’ll be sharing some of those soon.

David and his Street Library

David and his Street Library

Steve checking out the Obama book.

Steve checking out the Obama book.

Hannah coming out to say hello.

Hannah coming out to say hello.

Hannah and her Street Library

Hannah and her Street Library

You can find the Library and Sharewaste at 21 Tower Ave, Alphington.

You can find the Library and Sharewaste at 21 Tower Ave, Alphington.

As well as the library, David also hosts a Share Waste site. What is Share Waste, I hear you ask? Good question. I’d never heard of it and you can find out more here. https://sharewaste.com/ . This is what they say, “We connect people who wish to recycle their kitchen scraps with their neighbours who are already composting, worm-farming or keep chickens. Now you can divert waste from landfill while getting to know the people around you!”
As we were talking we were interrupted by Troy and Clio from the next street over who had come to deposit their scraps in the Compost Bin along the side fence. They stopped for a chat and said they’d been adding their waste to the compost for about a year.

Steve and David discussing the local flora and fauna.

Steve and David discussing the local flora and fauna.

Troy and Clio sharing their scraps for the greater good of the planet.

Troy and Clio sharing their scraps for the greater good of the planet.

It’s a great way to help the planet and meet the neighbours at the same times. Clio depositing scraps while Troy is hiding.

It’s a great way to help the planet and meet the neighbours at the same times. Clio depositing scraps while Troy is hiding.

Hannah is 14 years old with a bit of arthritis but is a lovely friendly soul. Stop in and say g’day.

Hannah is 14 years old with a bit of arthritis but is a lovely friendly soul. Stop in and say g’day.

Home time

 

Oct 2019
After 7 weeks away it’s time to head home. Here’s a few random pics from my last day in Killarney before catching a train back to Dublin and an early flight back to Aus. It sounds so simple but the number of things that go wrong getting from one place to another are astounding.
Now that I’m blogging these photos in the middle of a pandemic lockdown with no overseas travel in the foreseeable future, I am so grateful for the experiences (good and bad and challenging) and the sights and wonders of travelling the world.

Ireland - Killarney National Park

 

Rutting and jaunting.

Right next to the town centre of Killarney you can walk into the National Park and discover a world of interest and beauty. I was told about the Deer Rutting and discovered Jaunting Cars and castles and lakes and hills and gardens and trails and sunshine and showers and rainbows and friendly people and generally just another magical place in Ireland.

Ireland - Killarney. Day trip to Dingle and the Slea Head drive.

 

Oct 2019
Cute town, gorgeous scenery. Just an amazing part of the world to experience really.

Ireland - Killarney. Muckross House and Gardens.

 

Oct 2019
A very enjoyable afternoon wandering the grounds and gardens around Muckross House and Gardens. The house is part of the Killarney National Park.

Ireland - Killarney Day 1

 
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Oct 2019
I had 3 days in Ireland. I knew it wasn’t long enough but I considered it a ‘taster’ for future reference. I joined a facebook group to get an idea of the best places to go in such a limited time and was surprised at how many people considered it too far to go from Dublin to Killarney (a 3 1/2 hour drive) for 3 days. I guess the Australian distances give a different perspective to distance. I ended up catching the train from Dublin to Killarney (had one change of train along the way) and had a lovely relaxing time chatting to an elderly lady about the ‘Troubles’ and the ‘Sunshine and Showers’ and the landscape of Ireland.

I settled in to my spacious room with ensuite at an AirBnB and did a little happy dance. Next day, I set out without an umbrella in drizzling rain to walk to pick up a hire car. I underestimated the distance and the weather so called into the only shop along the way, a petrol station store, thinking surely they would sell umbrellas. Nope. I must have looked forlorn enough for the woman to take pity on me as she handed me a huge, solid umbrella that had been left behind some time ago. I ‘paid it forward’ at the end of the trip by leaving it at the train station for someone else.
I picked up the hire car, was told not to worry about the scratches on the sides because you can’t avoid the brambles on the narrow roads, and off I went into the pouring rain. And everything you think about the Irish Countryside is pretty much how it is. Lush, green and beautiful.

When you ask for tips on where to photograph you really need to ask another photographer as most non-photographers send you to the nearest lookout. I headed in the direction of ‘Ladies View’, about 19 kilometres out of Killarney because it was as good as any to explore my surroundings. I spent a good few hours stopping along the side of the road to take photos and I spent about two minutes at the lookout. The rain eventually stopped and I waded through flooded roads and boggy marshes and had the most exhilarating day exploring and photographing.
If you had a spare 6 weeks this would be a great place to explore further.