Foto Friday, Happy Easter from Mars!

Welcome back to Foto Friday, the Easter edition!

Whilst most of you are probably sinking a festive public holiday bevie or orchestrating an attack of the chocolate kind on your tastebuds I’m dining on the ‘finest’ that Qantas has to offer as I make my way from Brisbane to Perth, then Perth to Karratha to visit my dad who moved to Western Australia about eight months ago.  Mmmm crying kids and over air conditioned planes, you’re obviously jealous I know.

Now as much as I am looking forward to seeing my eccentric father who is the human incarnation of homer Simpson (he screams like a womanand eats packets of chips in the shower), the timing may ‘happen’ to coincideit with Whale Shark and Manta season on the Ningaloo reef….convenient right?! Woo hoo sharks….and er spending time with dad ;) We are still having an argument pre visit as to whether or not he can convince me to haul ass on a12 hour detour to visit Karijini National park for only a 3-4 hour explore since that’s all our schedule will allow with all my pre booked Whale Shark adventures and all! Argument between Homer and blonde Lisa TBC.

Back to the traveling on Good Friday part, I’m freaking stoked that I have a new camera for the trip to capture and get a bit funky with the amazing country side and vivid colours that I have seen depicted of Western Australia in glossy travel mags. My new digital baby is a Sony NEX 5R in white :) a sleek mirror-less camera with some beastie lenses (ok maybe just the Sony twin lens kit but it’s a start!).  I know you’re not meant to love material possessions, but this is definitely the new love of my life. Now we’ve just started dating at the moment, but I already have strong feelings, so I hope it’s reciprocated.  Guess we shall find out after traveling for a week if we work well together!

So I am on the plane to Perth itching to play and frolic with NEX after already poaching a free window seat and I wasn’t disappointed when I peered down at the rugged landscape as we tracked over the middle of Oz. Were we even still on planet earth? It looked like a detour via mars with rugged deep trenches and craters texturizing the topography in rich reds, maroons, and sun-burnt oranges contrasted with swirls of khaki and sandy hues creating an otherworldly effect you would expect to see in a surrealist painting.  

Dali wasn’t crazy, he obviously just had one too many chardy’s on a Qantas flight to Karratha, because after a few drinks I could picture elephants on stilts and melting clocks making perfect sense in this arid and unreal environment. ‘Drink till it makes sense’ is my motto, especially when talking to my braniac brother about science. It’s when I drink until I can see through time (usually at Oktoberfest after consuming several steins of ridiculously crisp and smooth German bier) that I know I’m entering Einstein territory ;)

So here are my ‘just playing around shots’ taken through the window of the plane, some actually taken with a wide aperture on the telephoto lens because I wanted to try and create a more elusive effect…yeah go with that :P Off to try and buy some filters for landscapes tomorrow.

Happy Good Friday!

Reminds me of a red moon

This is where the aliens and elephants on stilts go for their Easter holidays, it's considered tropical.

Reminds me of marble paper

Perspective shot

Foto Friday-Flirting with a Retro Revival

Welcome friends to Foto Friday!  

The idea behind Foto Friday is a focus on visual stimulation and the emotion of experience, adventure and place- all from my weekly life.  An ‘easy to consume’ blog entry for all those who’s brains are already throwing a cocktail party or sinking a beer….and because by Friday I am waaaay too knackered to write a big verbose blog entry, er but it’s mainly for the artsy stuff I said first ;)

So the focus for this Friday is on a photo shoot that I did with my mate Jodie late last Sunday, which she had lined up with our friend and photographic mastermind Alec. It entailed grandiose plans of new discovery to find the old, or ‘Derelicte’ as Mugatu from Zoolander would say.

The focus of our search- unused old railway tracks in Brisbane, for a yesteryear type feel with a modern twist. Picture Pride & Prejudice, only Lizze (main protagonist) got well fit and sexed it up in her bra to bring all the boys to the yard, or in our case the unsuspecting Port of Brisbane!

It was an exciting feeling as Jodes and myself started tracking potential leads for old train tracks in the greater Brisbane area, and getting an inadvertent history lesson, and a rather tragic one at that. Dayboro train crashes from 66 years ago, secret buried underground tunnels, all sorts of new information that suddenly made Brisbane gritty with some retro world charm and a few under the rug secrets. Jodie finally got the best lead from her dad who gave us a hot tip about unused railway lines at the Port of Brisbane- how gungy! Whenever someone mentions ‘port ’ I always picture loud fog horns and a seedy underbelly of general shady encounters and dirty deals- fabulous!

We eagerly tracked google maps as I navigated us to the tracks that were still showing on the blueprint of modern technology.  There was definitely some nervous glee as we grew closer on the map with visions of the best kept photo shoot destination in Brisbane.

Finally tracks! Beautiful, rusty tracks.  We followed them along excited as they lead us down to the Port of Brisbane (no gangstas in sight, damn!) next to big rusty ship chains and watched them even intersect the road which had been built around them, perfectly juxtaposing modern with antiquated.

Anyway, enough with the blab- here’s the photo’s I took. I think you’ll pick your own theme from them pretty quickly. For me it was about creating intrigue, suspending a moment of raw emotion or building the climax in a story untold.  Every so often Alec kept getting in the way with all his fancy expensive equipment and cameras, nothing worse than when the official photographer keeps getting in the way of your amateur photo jaunt….enjoy!                

 (Images Copyrighted to Aqua Em)

Estee Lauder, I am available and waiting for your call!

On no the model fell asleep again!

Come what may...

Dear 'official photographer' "Move b*@ch get out the way" is what Ludacris would say!

I'm still waiting for your call Estee Lauder, do you mind if I call you 'Laz'?

Here we have some iphone photography at its finest!

Do you even filter?

Port of Brisbane Courtesy of Apple Iphone!

From Crunk to Currumbin, a Gold Coast Caper!

Last weekend started a little early for me when I drove down the to the Gold Coast on Valentine's Day with one of my best mates to see Lil Jon perform at Love nightclub.  Nothing celebrates the ‘Day of Love’ like ABC shots, surrounded with the plastic glitterati of the Gold Coast nightlife and a seedy rapper with diamonds on his teeth telling you to ‘pop yo pussy, YEEAAagghhh’.  Needless to say it was fantastic!

We were greeted with a glowing red battery powered heart each on arrival at Love nightclub, and an exotic looking fan that said ‘F*ck it’s Hot’ printed elegantly on the front.  There was no escaping that we were in the best that Broadbeach has to offer on a Thursday night. For those that don’t know Broadbeach is like Surfer’s Paradise’s little cousin, it could turn out trashy with some unfortunate tattoo’s but we’re still waiting to see if the bad kids in school influence its long term potential. 

Is this not the epitome of a V Day Instagram winner? Romance eat ya heart out!

Beautiful and practical because that be how 'bitchez' roll.

The venue was intimate and had some cool light displays already going on the walls and ceilings not to mention an LED sign above the DJ Booth where Lil Jon was to later greet the throngs of scantily clad women that said ‘Let’s get F*cking Lose’.  I was impressed it was censored and spelled correctly, an exercise in etiquette and English! 

After debating whether the drinks would be cheaper at the strippers, and considering it as a valid option (good music, short queues), we remembered a cover charge usually enters into the equation, so instead wandered across the road to a lively little bar with karaoke and middle age women having the time of their life. This was where the ABC Shots began, or as Lil Jon would say, we started to get CRUNK! This apparently is a scientific metamorphosis phase before you get outta your mind white boy wasted. Rhodes Scholars (and mums) say you shouldn’t mix drinks….well this mix does all the damage packaged neatly into one shot of Absinthe, Bacardi 151 and Chartreuse for the time poor alcoholic. 

Couple of these bad boys mixed with some chasers, and the addition of a lovely chic bumming smokes and drugged to the eyeballs on apparently only ‘two beers’ and we were back in Love. Minus the druggie she wasn’t let in by the bouncers…shaaaame!

Not too long after our re-entrance Lil Jon came out to a packed club and worked his magic with his lyrical genius including classic catch phrases *yyyeeeeeaaarhhh* *ohhhhhkkkaayyy* ‘we gonna get Crunk TONIGHT!’ It was pure heaven, bless our wigger hearts. I’m pretty sure I was dancing and krumping just like Beyonce, and definitely not wildly drunk standing on other chics feet and elbowing through the crowd to take the below photos of Lil Jon. That wouldn’t of been very lady like of me!

*yeeeaaaaarrghhh*

'Lil Jon I give my heart to thee' said about 200 women.

Look ma, no hands!

Next day was a perfect hangover cure of Eggs Benedict and mini golf. Naturally we took the advanced course, complete with motorised challenges.  We were warned by the attendant that is was the MOST challenging course. I looked at the group of kids reaching for putters and the mum, dad and baby heading off in that direction and assured her we would survive; besides everyone knows your hand eye coordination after a night drinking is a-mazing.  No wait that’s when you’re in the zone. Ah well. 

Only on the Gold Coast does the mini golf course have a statue of Pinocchio looking like he’s giving a lap dance in an exotic club! In one of my totally planned and masterful shots I had to putt my ball out right from underneath Humpty Dumpty’s ass, like the hung-over pro that I was, I managed to take the shot with ‘minimal’ joking and land it in an even worse place then underneath Humpty’s derriere.  A perfect way to nurture a hangover into some submission, even if the family behind caught up to us and I think their eight year old son may have been better than me! (I’m pretty sure I could beat him in a competitive game of scissor, paper rock).

Pinocchio exotic dance style

Getting cosy with Humpty's ass..we were cheek to cheek!

 On Saturday after a night of drinking with my mate’s dad and introducing him to the game of kings we headed for Currumbin Beach to cleanse our souls (filled with some alcoholic remorse, but mostly a hankering for fried goodness).  The weather was eclectic and moody with light spots of rain starting to rejuvenate our heads. 

We detoured for breakfast to the Elephant Rock Café  which despite the long wait delivered one of the best café made strawberry smoothies I have had in my life and a surprisingly delicious and filling ‘scrambled tofu’ dish for me.  Yes, it’s true I eat tofu, I’m not sure if there’s a support group I should join, but we do walk amongst you and we don’t all look like unshaven hippies.  I have been ‘selectively’ vegetarian on and off for nearly 14 years and always rejected the stuff till I read that it was good for my blood type apparently and started putting it into my cooking and lunches.  I have been an addict for about 3 months now, I think it’s too late, I’ll just have to learn to live with the condition best I can, please don’t tell me family, I’ll break it to them.  One day.

After a filling breakie we climbed the real Elephant Rock, which is situated next to the Currumbin Surf Club and provides awesome views at the top over-looking the beach and menacing storm on the distant skyline, as well as extra views for the lucky person behind you as you climb up the stairs in a skirt!

Views to the sunny side from Elephant Rock

Currumbin beach

We decided it was time to hit the beach! It was still overcast, but that kind of exciting weather where it keeps changing with a light breeze and tantalising glimpses of blue sky. It was awesome to actually lie on the beach in the middle of the day and not feel like you are melting in a pool of sunscreen into the sand. After letting breakfast settle in our tums we braved the ominous looking surf.  My mate went charging into the waves like spider man at a Lycra sale, however I took my time to acclimatise to the brisk temperature of the water. Yep I was soft. However once I finally dived in it was heaven.  

Perfect weather for chilling on the beach in comfort

The waves were surprisingly un-dumpy further out, and there was a channel that you could chill in between waves breaking, or body surf your way into some more action packed face palming waves closer to shore like some my mate managed to land in. The water temperature became perfect and I could have stayed there for hours entertaining the childish excitement of seeing a wave build and get really big before diving underneath it and watching the bottom of it swirling and bossing around the sea floor.

From sleaziness to surf, and crunking to Currumbin it had been a fantastic couple of days down on the Coast, fulfilling a need for man-made delights in the flickering lights of a semi-sinful Broadbeach to café chilling and swims on the beach.  There’s always mischief to be had on the Gold Coast, which is bound to awaken some senses even when it isn’t so golden!

1770, an Unchanging Seachange & the place to get LARC'ed!

There’s a sleepy little sea change region  I visited when I was 18 called Seventeen Seventy,  located about 2 hours north of Bundaberg (QLD), which I ventured to again with my bestie over the new year’s period to escape the chains of our Brisbane desks.  What had stuck in my head as a sedate little paradise of Captain Cook fame, boasting colourful locals, bronzed surfers, plenty of Australian bush and ‘beer o’clock’ had barely changed one bit to my delight!

No supermarkets in sight just speckled with a few little convenience stores, surf shops, some beautiful beaches and places to refresh our thirst.  My favourite watering-hole was called ‘The Tree’ enticing a mix of locals and some holiday makers, serving a mean Long Island Iced-Tea. The tucked away gem overlooked the glistening water where the house boats docked as well as the cruising, diving and fishing boats that frequented Lady Musgrave & Elliot islands, Great Barrier Reef and the surrounding area. 

View from 'The Tree'

                                       

Long Island Iced-Tea time at The Tree

Our friend Neil offered to take us for a sand boarding excursion out on one of the island-hopping businesses he owned, however I was not prepared for his ‘hybrid fleet’ of vehicles that sparked my childish imagination in an excitable way.  Was it a boat? Was it a steely people mover, was it potentially a submarine? …it was a LARC! Was it way awesome? Yes! 

It was essentially a boat with wheels and an engine that could handle road, rough and soft terrain, and of course water! An amphibious vehicle they affectionately called it. This was like the monster truck I have always wanted to own that would enable me to drive over anything, including other cars, and park anywhere during the dreaded Christmas shopping periods at malls when I have left all my present acquisition until the last minute. 

Rear view of the LARC at one of our island stops

The inner child in me struggled to contained itself. Not only were we gliding through water with ease, dolphins greeting us right beside the boat, switching to land mode caning it down the beach, but we were also going to slide down a big ass sand hill on a tiny little board. It was a beautiful sun-kissed day and both me and my mate Jodie couldn’t wipe the smiles off our faces despite our 5 hours sleep.

Caning down the beach!

We arrived at the dunes on Middle Island after passing one idyllic beach with rugged wilderness views after another, and we were greeted with the largest ‘hunk’ of sand mountain I have ever seen in my life. I’m no sand dune connoisseur but, it was prodigiously impressive even to this seasoned beach lover.  I was actually apprehensive! I thought when we got there I would be face palming children out of the way to get to the top first, but even the littlies embarrassingly beat me to the punch. It took me a while to envisage which part I was going to face plant first.

Jodie in front of one of the dunes

 Jodie and myself finally ran up the sweltering hot sand with board in hand to have our first crack. We were told to let our toes touch the sand for a bit to create a little bit of resistance on the way down (sophisticated braking system). I watched Jodes disappear over the edge of the sandy abyss before lying flat on the board for my go. As Neil pushed me off (something I’m sure he delighted in) I slid easily down the first part of the hump revealing the drop off before me, which I went bolting down! Sliding and spinning out over water at the end, the coolness offered a refreshing respite to the fire I was quite certain must have been coming off my feet as I hurtled down forgetting to remove my toes even once! 

The sandy drop off that shoots you over the water!

 After a couple of goes flying down the dune with speed, cooling swims, lunch and Jodie getting stung by a jellyfish we had already forgotten about a thing called work and were making the blissful transition to holiday hippies!

Holiday Hippies!

The LARC is no match for my immaturity!

 The verdict? Awesome five hours of day trip fun!  The sand is a scorcher on feet, but the plus side is you could bet someone that you can walk over hot coals later (down at The Tree) and almost pull it off with the lack of sensitivity in your feet.  However I wouldn’t actually recommend that, not until consumption of at least 4 Long Island Iced Teas ;)

Prawns and tropical cocktails back at The Tree

Sunset view (zoomed) from The Tree :)