Trifter

On January 26^th of this year I was living in my home of Australia which was near the beach.  This is quite normal for Australians, as we are a sun-loving people.  This day however is Australia Day, which is a bit like 4^th of July here so everyone was out and about at the beach, playing Cricket in the parks and having barbecues and picnics everywhere.  The following ias a photo-essay of Australia-Day festivities in Coolum Beach in Australia.

This boardwalk extends along the seafront on top of the cliffs looking out to the Pacific Ocean.  If you squint your eyes just right you can see Disneyland in California.

The water was a bit rough that day so the surf club moved the flags about 200 yards north of the usual spot.  You can see the crowd of swimmers on the beach above.

This is the warning so that people won’t sue Val and Dave.

There is a long Aboriginal tradition at Coolum and this Aboriginal Artwork showcases this

Walking north along the boardwalk.

A native Pandanus tree grows behind

Looking from the North, South to Point Peary.

The local population is quite proud of their heritage.

This is one of the beach safety signs that tell people how to read the flags and surf conditions.  Notice once again a large Pandanus tree behind.

On Australia Day it is fitting and patriotic that the owner of this restored classic 1948 FJ Holden drives around to be admired.  This FJ Holden, made by GM-Holden is the Australian built counterpart of the GM Chevrolet of that same era.  It had a straight 6, 138 cube motor, unlike the V8s of Chevy.

This is a closeup of the Pandanus tree which has been glimpsed in previous photos.  The fruit resembles a pineapple but it is quite inedible.  These trees grow all over the east coast of Australia

This was the price of gasoline in Australia back in January 2008.  Don’t for one minute think that we have inexpensive gas.  The first price is $1.27 per LITRE not gallon.  If you multiply this figure by 3.5 you will get the price for a US gallon.  The big difference with gas prices in Australia is that once they go up they rarely come back down anywhere near as far.  The Gas sign is LP gas, ULP is Unleaded Petrol or Gasoline..