National Art School HSC Intensive - Clara's Paintings

Clara was selected for the National Art School's HSC (Higher School Certificate) Instensive class in Painting.  Year 11 students from around NSW applied for the opportunity to participate.

Cell Block Theatre Sign

You can see the circular stairs and bars in
sandstone and bars on the windows of
Cell Block Theatre

Clara's Horse painting was displayed in the Cell Block Theatre.  This theatre has an interesting history.  The restoration project was officially announced in 1955 by Katharine Hepburn.

Originally built in 1836 as a prison block for female inmates, The theatre is a reminder of Sydney's dubious origins as a place for convicts to serve their terms.  The original sandstone walls and bars on windows remain.

Clara's "translation" of Anna Vinogradova painting

The National Art School (University) in Sydney.  Clara had to travel with Dave to the train station in the morning (6:45 am departure time) and returned home about about 6:45 pm - so a full 12 hour day.

The class ran over 9 days - 4 consecutive days in the school holidays after Term 2 and 5 consecutive days in the school holidays after Term 3.  Clara just completed the course.  In 9 days, she "transcribed" 5 paintings.  She seemed to enjoy Anna Vinogradova's paintings.  She learned a lot.

On Friday, there was a public Open House with the art from each Year 11 participant on display.  I took Tristan, Zoe and Neo to the Open House.

Clara's "translation" of Anna Vinogradova painting

Taronga Zoo on a Winter's Day July 2014

It's the NSW school holidays, so I took the younger children to the Taronga Zoo.  My plans to go last week were put on hold do to illness in the household.  First Zoe, then Tristan and finally Neo were each sick. Zoe required antibiotics and missed 3 days of school.  Everyone has returned to health, thankfully.

We endeavored to see different displays, and we were successful.  The highlight of the day was the QBE Free Flight Bird Show.  The California Condor, with a wingspan of 3 metres, flew directly over our heads (and quite low).  We also sat along the side where the white doves landed in the nearby tree.  Lovely.

Tasmanian Devil

Bilbys

Victoria Crowned Pigeon.
This bird is both beautiful, and large.

Sydney Opera House
as seen from the Taronga Zoo Ferry

Sydney Harbour Bridge
as viewed from Taronga Zoo

Flat Stanley does Bondi

Flat Stanley at Bondi Beach - (I like the small people above the sign)

Panorama of Bondi

Tristan's 4th grade class created Flat Stanley at the end of Term 3. Their assignment these school holidays is to take pictures with Flat Stanley in various (iconic) places. We have never been to Bondi Beach. On Tristan's birthday we went to Bondi.

Kids on playground at park by Bondi Beach

Neo watching/feeding ibis

Kids enjoyed feeding the pigeons

The day was warm with gusts of wind. We packed a lunch to grill on the barbie. While I was grilling, Clara cut the bread. She had some crumbs which she threw to the 3-4 pigeons that had come to partake of our lunch. Instantly more then 20 pigeons and an ibis descended on us. We had a fast lunch between holding our plates down and keeping the birds at bay! The kids enjoyed feeding the birds after eating.

All the kids played on the playground. Then we went for a walk along the coastal track. The Bondi rock pool is really special - 50m with swim lanes.

Big rock must be climbed.

Along the coastal walk near Bondi

Bondi's rock pool

On the way home, we stopped at an automated car wash. The car wash damaged my new car! I was so distressed. They say they'll fix it and give me a rental while they do so. We have to bring the car in next week.

My poor car!

Australian Autumn

The Brisbane Waters/Woy Woy Girls Regional Soccer Team shakes hands with their opponents after a match at Putney Oval

Sorry I've been so long away from the Blog! Once the kids got back into school, we've been quite busy with their activities.


Clara played goalie in the last game...nothing much going on - see the birds

On 30 April, Clara played 5 soccer games in a row as a representative of the Brisbane Waters/Woy Woy regional girls soccer team. She had to leave the house at 6:15am to make it to the game location in Putney, a suburb of Sydney. Her schoolmate and friend also made the team. Her mother could drive the girls there, but could not bring Clara back. So after I got the other children off to school, I drove to Putney. It was a beautiful park. Clara's team placed 3rd of the 6 teams that played. Her friend was chosen to be on the Sydney North team which will go on to play at the State level. Congratulations to Clara for making it as far as she did. We're very proud of her.


Neo inside the Sydney Opera House - Harbour side.

On 4 May, Zoe and Tristan went with their school to see "The Little Mermaid" at the Sydney Opera House. They went by bus and had to be to school by 7:20am. Neo and I took the train and met them there. It was a beautiful autumn day! The performance was not what I expected. Nothing visual for the children - just lights, occasionally, and the narrator with a scarf as a prop! There was a 13 piece orchestra to accompany. The story did not follow the Disney script either.


Inside the Harbourside of the Opera House

I've never been inside the Sydney Opera House before. The performance was in the Concert Hall - the smaller theatre. The most amazing feature of the Sydney Opera House is the bathroom! Really, it was an amazing design.

Bathroom sinks at the Sydney Opera House

Following the performance, the school children had lunch in the Royal Botanical Gardens. Neo and I caught the train to Wynnum station and had lunch with Dave. It was nice to see his corner of Sydney - and the famous Pitt Street.


ANZAC Memorial near Pitt Street, Sydney.


Tristan with the kids from Copa school performing @ Mother's Day Extravaganza

There was a Mother's day stall at school on Thursday, May 7. Each classroom was escorted to the hall where many gifts were wrapped in clear wrappings. The children could chose a gift for their mom to give her on mother's day. Each gift was $6. Gifts ranged from tea cups to teddy bears, to toe nail and finger nail kits, and of course chocolate. It was well done. I gave Zoe and Tristan money. Tristan said he didn't find anything to his liking. Zoe gave me a toenail kit - so our nails are beautiful now.


Zoe making her Mother's day craft (flower)

On Friday 8th of May, there was the Mother's Day extravaganza at school. It began with a tea and scone. The scone was delicious - but I only had 1 bite as Zoe claimed 1/2 of it and Neo claimed the other! LOL Then the children gathered together for a short performance by the Kindergarten to Year 3 students. It was very sweet. Then the moms went to the classrooms to help with a special mother's day art project. Lovely.


Tristan with his finished Mother's day craft

Sydney Aquarium

Neo in front of the aquarium wall, with the fish over and on either side - a viewing tunnel

On Wednesday, 15 April, we went to the Sydney Aquarium. We again bought the DayTripper Family pass from the Woy Woy Train depot. We rode the train in to Sydney....but this time it was standing room only! We were able to board the train in the doorway of the last car. Every other car was packed - no room for another person to enter. We stood in the entryway of the train for about 1/2 the trip. Then we had the good fortune to sit. Most of those on the train got off at Strathfield exit - so they were on their way to The Royal Easter Show - which is not unlike the Wisconsin State Fair meets Summerfest. We had no problem taking the Circle Train then Wharf 5 on Circular Quay for Darling Harbour.


I took a few pictures during our ferry ride across Sydney Harbour. I thought this water taxi was cool

The Aquarium had long lines for admission. There were examples of aquatic life from the Murray Darling River Basin. I was intrigued by this area since Kevin Rudd's stimulus plan was passed by 1 vote - after a generous contribution to engineer a solution to the Murray Darling River Basin problem.



One of the main attractions to the Aquarium was the Dugong - a creature related to the Manitee. There are only 5 dugongs in captivity and the Sydney Aquarium has 2 - 1 male and 1 female. The story goes that the Sailors mistook the dugongs for mermaids. That's why the Aquarium had "mermaids" at the entrance to the dugong pool.



The largest tank areas of the aquarium appears to be a large boat anchored to the harbour floor. To enter the area, guests walk across gang planks and go down a ramp to the floor of the boat. The viewing area is from the ocean floor. The fish swim overhead! It's a really cool way to view the fish.


Diver cleaning the glass of the viewing tunnel over Clara's shoulder

There's a please touch rock pool area for kids to feel some sea creatures. There were some very large glass areas where the sharks reside. It was really well done, and a different perspective from other aquariums I've visited (Boston and Chicago).

One of the things I learned at the aquarium is that the jellyfish we saw in Queensland were not blue bottle - instead they were Box jellyfish. The instructions for dealing with these stings was vinegar then seek medical attention - can cause death. So that girl that was stung when we were in Queensland should have been seeking medical assistance. Blue bottles are much smaller - and there are many of those here.

Sydney Walk About

Harbour Bridge from Circle Train Platform

It's Easter Holidays. In fact, most of Australia closes down to observe Good Friday, so Dave had off from work. Dave also had Easter Monday as a holiday from work. During this time, we saw the aboriginal drawings and went on other excursions near our home.

The kids have 12 days off school. So we are taking this time to do some exploring. We looked into having some time away from the area, but there's a minimum number of nights required and a premium for overnight bookings, so we're going to stick to day trips.

On Tuesday, we bought a DayTripper transportation ticket with the Family Deal. The Family Deal is 1 adult can take up to 4 children for the price of 1 adult fare plus 1 child fare. Neo is under 4, so he is free. The DayTripper one price with unlimited rides on buses, trains, and ferries. For the cost of a return train ticket to Sydney (which means round trip ticket), we could also ride the ferry.


Bronze Plaque

We arrived in Sydney's Circular Quay at 10:45. There's a great view of the Harbour Bridge from the train platform (see picture). It was the children's first time in Sydney. On the Quay, are bronze plaques commemorating individuals. Also markers where the original Circular Quay was - before the most current.


Harbour View of the Sydney Opera House

We walked by the Sydney Opera House at the end of the Circular Quay and across from the Royal Botanical Gardens.


Zoe at the gate of the Royal Botanical Gardens

We had packed a lunch and drinks, so we decided to dine in the Royal Botanical Gardens. A couple of ibis birds kept us company while we ate. Neo enjoyed chasing one around the park for a while.


Harbour Bridge from the Royal Botanical Gardens

Near to where we ate was a wonderful view of the famous Harbour Bridge. If you look closely, you can see people climbing up the arch of the bridge - it's a sight seeing trip. One we won't be taking.



After lunch, we walked around the Government House, which is inside the Gardens but fenced off. The grounds are available for touring daily. The interior has tours on the weekend. As we walked through the gardens, we noticed a large colony of bats roosting in the trees.


Tristan on one of the stones

Outside of the Gardens, we found this interesting Art display. It apparently is unique pieces of a building that once stood.


Zoe playing on the stones


Zoe and Tristan outside a restaurant in Darling Harbour

We walked back to the Circular Quay and took the ferry to Darling Harbor. Darling harbour is a tourist destination. The Sydney Aquarium is there. There are many hotels and restaurants.


Crane water fountain


We walked past many water features.


We walked past the Chinese Gardens.


Wall of Water, water feature

We walked on the outskirts of China Town, and the Paddy Markets, on our way to the Central Train station, so we could catch our train home. We arrived back in Woy Woy about 45 minutes before Dave.