Tagged with Australia …

An Enlightened Whale

This is a rather extraordinary piece from yesterday’s I newspaper: WHALE ASKS BOAT OF FISHERMEN FOR HELP A whale swam to a group of fishermen, nudged their boat and opened its mouth revealing it was caught up with fishing line and plastic bags. Michael Riggio, 17, filmed the moment as his friend Ivan Iskenderian removed … Continue reading →

A Lonely Grave

One of the great horror stories from the age of exploration is that of the Wreck of the Batavia, which is Australia’s most famous shipwreck. The Dutch East India ship foundered off the coast of West Australia and most of those on board survived, in 1629, but when some of the officers went off to … Continue reading →

The Most Important Battle of World War I?

In a few weeks, on 9 November, it will be 100 years since the battle happened which could have changed the world, and yet efforts to have it commemorated have failed to raise much interest. This is the date that the Australian navy’s first light cruiser, the HMAS Sydney, began a running sea battle with … Continue reading →

Monkey Grip by Helen Garner

This is the book I chose to write about in my MA degree as the book that changed my life. At the time it felt like I just pulled it out of the air, but it is one of the few books that I keep returning to and seeing something more in it, more layers, … Continue reading →

Slow Planes

Recent events notwithstanding, airline safety has improved so much over recent decades, that it is now by far the safest means of travel, and controlled by incredibly tight regulation. I once met a stewardess who worked short haul flights in Australia, who told me that when they had a load of football players on their … Continue reading →

Money Really Does Grow on Trees

Well, almost. Scientists in outback Australia have made a discovery that  could revolutionise how gold is mined – they have found traces of the metal in the leaves and branches of eucalyptus trees in the remote Kalgoorlie region of Western Australia. But before you pack your swag and head for the bush, the gold is … Continue reading →