LAKE DENNIS AND A BUNYA TREE.

The weather is becoming warm and sunny, The days have been so nice that I have taken Bill a little further afield from the village for his daily walk. Last week we ventured out to Lake Dennis  in the next suburb, Daisy Hill. Lake Dennis is named after a pioneering family of our district.  James Dennis immigrated from Cornwall in1864. He married Mary Ann Markwell in 1867 and they had 18 children, not all survived. They acquired over 800 acres. They named it Daisy Hill after their daughters found a native daisies growing on the hill. When the land was passed onto son, Frank, he built a dam wall and after the first heavy rains the dam filled and has been there ever since. This is where we walked today.

On the way back to the car we passed this huge Bunya Pine Tree.  (Araucaria bidwillii) It is an ancient, evergreen, conifer native to south-east Queensland, Australia. They have a huge seed cone that fall during summer and autumn posing a safety hazard. They have been bush tucker for indigenous people for years. The cone can be split open for the large seeds that can be ground into flour. The seeds are like huge pine nuts.

The female cone is as big as a football. (from the web)

Bunya seeds (from the web)

CHRISTMAS IN JULY

 July and August are our coldest months in Australia. In Brisbane we have a fairly mild winter although the mornings can be cold. Bill and I go out to lunch about once a week. I try to find a different restaurant close by each week. Last week we went to St Coco Cafe in Daisy Hill, the next suburb to us in Springwood. It was a modern place with young patrons, we were the only geriactics there. 

Bill had bratwurst, red cabbage, eggs and rösti.

I had Barramundi fish and vegetables and a delicious sauce.

After lunch we went for a walk near Lake Dennis.

The next morning was glowing.

That evening, the village dinner committee organised a 'Christmas in July' themed dinner. No doubt this will sound strange to many northern hemisphere readers. Because Australia was colonised by the British, early settlers and migrants from the northern hemisphere found it hard to feel like Christmas in December, in the middle of our summer. So for nostalgic reasons and just to have an excuse for a hot Christmas Dinner many Australians celebrate another Christmas in July.

Residents arrive and get a drink from the bar and find friends to chat with, like Bill and Steph.

The singers entertained us while we waited for dinner to be served.

Anne at 86 is the dinner coordinator. She hires the chefs and organises the catering course teachers and students from Rochdale High School to come and help in the kitchen and serve our meals. Here we are thanking them all for their contribution in helping us have a good night.

FOGGY FOTOS

We had a few foggy mornings this week. So I dug TOH out of bed and we went to our local lake, Dennis Lake, and took some foggy fotos early in the morning. I can't decide whether I like colour or black and white best. What do you think?

Colour

Black and White

Black and White

 Black and White

Black and White

A Walk by the Lake

We walk through the suburban streets for 20 minutes, passing by a Jacaranda still in flower.

Then we take a path through a small park which leads us to the edge of Lake Dennis. It is...

a very small man made lake. It was made by a pioneer called Dennis, who made the dam to hold water for his cattle and crops back in the 1800's. The land has subsequently been sold and developed into housing estates and the Dam donated to the council for the people.

We walk along the dam wall to the other side.

 Ducks busily foraging instead of posing for the camera.

Now we are on the other side you can look back across the lake in the other direction.

Admire the lily pads and the artistic fall of a dead tree before climbing a steep hill back into suburbia for a different way home.