extra feature...

This woman at the Australia Day celebrations on the Dromana foreshore last Saturday, amused me...
She has her mobile poised...
She is carrying a little dog on a lead under arm...
And there is an odd extra feature on her back...


a donkey bag? a child's bag?

watching...

A member of the Dromana Bay Surf Lifesaving Club
watches the setting up of competition buoys at the Australia Day celebrations in Dromana...


Close up of the surf rescue boards...


And more boards wait on the foreshore to be unloaded...


On the beach, a seagull keeps a watchful eye on the competition markers...

each to their own...

The great thing about Dromana's Australia Day celebrations
is the foreshore and beach setting allow everyone to find their own entertainment
beyond the crowds...
Yesterday's photos were 8:00am 'pre-crowd'...
This photo was taken when the crowd set in...
The foreshore trail was packed...as can be seen by all the legs at the top of the photo...
(The sea wall becomes a popular sitting area...)
But these 2 children found their own entertainment on the beach...


Some chose to seek greater heights...


And one woman chose a quiet place further away from the main entertainment area
to read a book by the sea...

Australia Day 2019 today...

It was a beautiful summer morning for Australia Day celebrations on the Dromana foreshore today...
Already, at 8am when the above photo was taken, people were milling around...


People were queuing for the egg and bacon breakfast - gold coin donation
- or the free sausage sandwich...


And the runners were pounding the foreshore trail from Safety Beach
through Dromana to Rosebud...


Some loved to climb...


Some checked out the animals in the animal enclosure...
(Mr Rabbit didn't seem too keen on meeting Mr Dog...)


There were cars to see...


And music to hear...


A great Australia Day morning by a beautiful blue sea under a radiant blue sky...

it's the season for jet skis...

With each passing summer, it seems that jet skis are becoming bigger and more flashy...
Some seem to be a cross between the original, nifty jet ski
and a mini, jet-propelled boat...
This one was recently parked by Dromana beach...
temporarily of course...

Australia Day is coming...

Advertisement for Australia Day activities this Saturday 26th January on the Dromana foreshore...


One of many signs along the foreshore trail
advertising the early morning annual Australia Day Fun Run from Safety Beach to Rosebud...

supermarket history...

An old long wall at the side of Ritchies Super IGA, Dromana - a supermarket-
has long looked drab and plain 'wallish'...
Now it has a black and white image + a framed bit of history of the supermarket...
(Sadly, I had to stand on this angle to get the full effect of the wall...
To stand in front meant to stand in front of cars entering the car park
- bit dangerous -
or
to stand on the other side of the incoming car park road
and cars - parked - blocked the lower elements of the wall...)


Frankston is a little north of Dromana on my Mornington Peninsula...
My Dromana Super IGA is quite an attractive supermarket - floral displays + cane baskets and wine barrels of goods...
It is the only supermarket I would call appealing...
Tourists love it...

Prime Mover...

impressive little boat leaving the Martha Cove boating channel
and heading out to Port Phillip Bay...

last summer...

At this time last year, early summer morning...
the sea was a rich blue at Dromana beach and the day began sunny...

moody summer morning...

View of Safety Beach and pier looking toward Dromana beach
and Arthurs Seat rising in the background...

ongoing duck party...

Right on Christmas, these 2 ducks decided to take a wander through our backyard...
I am told that these are Pacific Black Ducks, and are closely related to the mallard...





Then yesterday, 2 Australian Wood Ducks enjoyed wandering round our apple tree...





And we thought that the above sight was surprising enough, back on 18th October, 2018...
Here we see ducks and bubs crossing the road right in front of our driveway...
(No - There is no nearby dam, lake, pond or river...
There are just small wetlands, some walking distance away...)

Buckley's Rest...

Buckley's Rest is a little nook near beach boxes at Safety Beach...
It is a sheltered spot, separated
 from the direct run of beach walkers and bike riders...
And then there is the beautiful view of Port Phillip Bay
William Buckley, an escaped convict from Sullivan Bay, Sorrento, passed through the area in late 1803. He most likely stopped to recuperate and assess the landscape, deciding whether to go inland through the Kangerong basin or up and over Mt Martha.
Buckley finally walked round Port Phillip Bay to Barwon Heads
and lived for 32 years in an aboriginal community.

NOTE: Once again, it was a grey summer's morning this morning when I took the photos...

Ref: 1. The Life and Adventures of William Buckley - John Morgan
2. William Buckley's Escape

 P.S. For now, because of my extensive, demanding life commitments,
my photo subjects are somewhat limited to areas nearby home
and space devoted to photography is controlled by small, available time frames.

it's the season for the red flowering gum...

The red flowering gum is a popular feature in the summer streetscape...
lining the kerbside or islands of roadways... framing car parks....
This gum is one of several framing the Rosebud Hospital car park...

Today was a very grey day...but still the flowers were beautiful...

Eleanora...

On 2 December 2003, a plaque was unveiled at the Mornington Peninsula Hospital Rosebud,
commemorating the generosity of David Cairns
who bequeathed this limestone home 'Eleanora' (above)
and nine acres of land to the Alfred Hospital as a retreat for its nurses.
The Rosebud hospital was built on the site in 1961,
and today the hospital has extended behind this homestead on Point Nepean Road, Rosebud.
The plaque is located at the homestead entrance.