Alligator Gorge started with the worst coffee that I ever partially drank. Then a descent into the Gorge which was gorgeous in the early morning light and featured many tiny birds.

Dad and I looped anti-clockwise through the Gorge and then up onto the ridge. We followed the ridge road around until we got to the kingfisher track turn off, and we took a detour down that for a few kilometres past burnt scrub until we reached a little oasis camp ground with a mostly dry creek and some rocks in the shade to eat lunch on. I took probably the best photo of the day just sitting around eating my second sandwich while a large monitor lizard approached to drink from a puddle.

After lunch we reached the part called "The Narrows" which was also spectacular.

After 16 kilometres of trekking, we drove back to Wilmington to buy the double-strength iced coffee I'd been regretting not buying all morning at the servo. Unfortunately the servo was closed, but a standard FUIC from the vending machine down the street helped with the caffeine withdrawals a little bit.

After freshening up, we drove to Melrose for some beer and pizza at Jackas brewery, and the very attractive fire pit.

The night concluded with some milky way photography on the way back to the cabin, which this photo does not do justice.

Bradism.com in September so far has been very reflective. It's not surprising, considering that winter ended with a few major milestones (including the end of winter). And contrarily, the month so far has been quite an uneventful story for me for various reasons, and perhaps because of the main characters is off on a side quest for the past ten days.

Right now spring is like an unbloomed flower, ready to go but presently coiled and waiting. This made me think, too often I have taken photos of flowers but rarely of buds. So here's today's mood in picture form from the garden.

I have finished reviewing the photos I took in Europe in 2023 (for 2024 at least, I might go back one day).

This last batch are all from Paris and didn't feature in my journal entries from the week I spent there last June.

Let's get this one out the way early. View from atop Arc de Triomphe.

What a place to enjoy a beer on a Friday night in summer.

Let's get this one out the way early. Crêpes...

Sunset on the Seine glows through the roof of the Grand Palais.

I just enjoyed the architecture, well at least the façades.

View from atop Sacré-Cœur de Montmartre.

What a place to enjoy a picnic with friends on a Wednesday night in summer.

The last six days of my holiday (2.4% of a Jupiter day) have passed by at the normal, inevitable speed of life on planet Earth. Overall, an excellent break, where I accomplished nearly all of my to-do list (leaving enough to feel justified that it was a suitable amount of tasks) as well as relaxing and living in the moment occasionally as well.

Tuesday - a leisurely stroll around Morialta, with a break for breakfast, and then coffee on the way home. Plus more home-made pizza because, why not, it was holidays.

More wattle.

Wednesday - the sun was forecast to be shining, and I'd thought of doing a bike ride in the morning but after putting on my red shorts I decided I'd prefer just to walk around Croydon looking at flowers with Nash and drinking coffee. Here we are both enjoying a sun-patch.

In the evening, caught up with J and then took on the quiz at Big Shed with other members of Pump up the JAMB. Took out second, which I was quite elated about.

Thursday was my Azure Certification study day, noting that a lot of that study was while walking around the neighbourhood, clearing out my closet, walking clothes to the charity shop, cooking dinner, and working out. But mostly it was a lot of Azure study. I did walk Vanessa over to a friend's before dinner, and walked home westward watching the dark-purple sky light up with lightning flashes in the distance. As I wasn't getting rained on, this was pretty epic. I was listening to Azure study material at the time.

Friday was more exam revision (while walking around Croydon) followed by the exam which wrapped up around lunchtime. The rest of the afternoon was a blur of eating, working out, walking in the sunshine (and rain), and then writing up all my feelings about the intense cram session as my brain decompressed.

Saturday was a busy day, starting with a very short, slightly misty walk around North Adelaide with Nash who enjoyed the occasional patch of sun, but wanted no part of the activity once she realised the bakery wasn't our destination.

After that, went to the Central Markets for some produce and a good coffee and a brunch with Vanessa's friends, followed by a workout and then afternoon tea with in-laws. Then, dinner and showdown with Alex.

Sunday, the final day, partly cloudy but no rain, has had the feeling you get when you spend the afternoon in the winter sun and then the night settles in, multiplied by sixteen. That's not to say it hasn't been pleasant or productive. It began with the customary North Adelaide walk to bakery, pide-based pizzas for lunch, and then an afternoon doing some coding for the quiz night.

Before sunset we drove to the beach for a final walk in the sun.

I bought coffee all but two of my days off. The garden is looking fresher, the seedlings are shooting up ready for planting in September. I've seen family, friends, the beach, the hills. I've hiked and walked and been productive around the house. I watched half of a movie, and didn't play any video games. I've exercised nearly every day of the break. I've eaten desserts every day of the break. The flowers in the backyard are just starting to bloom, and there's fresh skin on my fingers after the friction burns of the first Tuesday from using the pruner... Hopefully these are good omens for the next chapter of entries tagged 'Office'. If not, I am not afraid of temporary unemployment once more.

I spent some of my holidays processing more Europe 2023 photos. I also spent some of it walking around in the sunshine with Nash, drinking good coffee and admiring flowers without a care in the world.

We only visited Switzerland for three nights last year, but I seem to have taken more good photos there than I did in Italy over two weeks. Noting that my opinion of good photos seems to be strongly corelated with "has a nice mountain in them". I do like a nice mountain.

Early morning in Venice

Dog walkers in Milan

First view of Kriens

Sunset cows on the way back from dinner.

A lone drone pilot and the Swiss Alps.

Pilatus at sunset.

Pilatus in morning light.

Somewhere halfway up Pilatus, in morning light.

Switchbacks and cogwheel train routes up the south face of Pilatus.

Cogwheel train descends down Pilatus (I would ride it myself later).

Swiss houses featuring a barn with a massive solar panel, off Lake Lucerne.

Sunrise over Emmen

Lucerne from the Männliturm.

It was a pretty nice day today.

Earlier this year after a visit to The Bluff, Nash led me to believe that she might be about to die of old age.

Thanks to some medical science - namely 4Cyte and a course of anti-arthritis injections - she has bounced back and returned to The Bluff with the vigour of a puppy, or at least an eight year old dog...

On a late winter day that hinted without subtlety about the coming new life of spring, Nash enjoyed my temporary retirement.

After we started with coffee and breakfast among the almond blossoms.

I also spotted some birds and a van.

(Not pictured - lamb and rosemary pie)

Much nicer than the office today.

In winter 2023 I went to Europe for a month and took lots of photos. A holiday I am reminded of constantly by being cold and unignorably not in Europe at times in winter 2024.

Despite posting a lot of photos during my trip, I had hundreds more to edit since then and the proportion of time I spent photographing in Europe has not been matched by the time I've spent posting them since.

So what better way to reminisce than to actually post some photos from 2023 in 2024.

This is part one.

Birds over Rome, just before sunrise. Thanks jetlag. View from Terrazza del Pincio. Not pictured - Vanessa eating an apple.

Castello Aragonese d'Ischia. You can walk up there and there's like five churches, some nice gardens and at least two places to buy a coffee.

Chiostro maiolicato (Cloister of Saint Clair). A contrast to the surrounding city of Napoli. Lots of cool artwork on tiles in a nice garden.

Lemon plantations on the stairs/hike up from Amalfi towards the forest.

One of the old paper mills near Amalfi on the way through Valle delle Ferriere.

More ruins between waterfalls in Valle delle Ferriere (Valley of the Mills).

Hiking on the path of the gods.

Positano from above, descending from path of the gods down to the sea of humanity.

Amalfi and Atrani seen from the ferry to Salerno. I hiked to basically every corner of this photo. Was one of the best weekends of my life.

Basilica di Santa Croce di Firenze, with Tuscany Hills in the background, taken from the top of the Duomo.

Interior view of the Duomo's painting.

Grand Canal, I think near Ponte di Rialto.

Piazza San Marco in the background, taken from the eastern tip of Dorsoduro

View from my favourite bridge in Venice, Ponte dell'Accademia.

Same outlook, featuring a gondola.