Monday, 1 June 2026

A Rainy Week Finding Autumn

 Week - 25 to 31 May

Endless days of rain. Thankfully the heaviest falls not over Brisbane South. The dawn of Tuesday morning was dark and threatening.

Janice and I walked the Corso to the Schonnel Bridge and the University of Queensland. In the heaviest downpour, we took shelter at the UQ bus station.


We laughed at this garden fence sculpture.


A lone autumn tree. The leaves were too damp to successfully throw into the air. We returned to The Green for coffee, a reward for a very damp, but enjoyable 11 km.

The following day, the Hungry Hikers walked from The Green to Stones Corner, to Churchie and on to Mowbray Park. Feet were tired, [12 km] so we took the Citycat upriver to Southbank, for our coffee.

View from the Churchie footbridge back to the city skyline.  We love Brisbane.

We love Brisbane from the Citycat.

One more autumn tree to toss leaves. Again with little success because of the damp.


Our good friend Jan, turned 70. As you know we love to celebrate. A surprise nibbles, pizza and bubbles was planned for late Friday afternoon, in the park below the Gateway Bridge. We had checked out the area a month ago and the view and sunset looked perfect. 

By Thursday morning we were wondering if the rain was ever going to stop. In fact it became heavier and with a thunderstorm or two thrown into the mix.
It was such a relief when we woke Friday, to sunshine.  On reaching the park at 2.30 pm to set up, we were almost blown away by the strong wind that replaced the rain.  We retreated to  a higher concreted area, that thankfully, was sheltered from the strong blast. The concrete hadn't impressed us when we were originally looking, but it turned out to be quite perfect.






Brisbane has a volunteer classical radio station, 4 MBS. Every May they host a Festival of classics. A music spectacular in our City Hall was the finale. This year they celebrated the 100 years of Australia's world reknowned soprano, Joan Sutherland. Just the most sensational afternoon of magnificent voices and orchestration. Many spine tingling, goosebump and teary moments, as we listened to famous pieces of Joan Sutherland's reportoire.

We then stepped outside to a golden sunset and a glowing red City Hall. Our feet were light, as we made our way to the bus stop.



I would love to read your comment.

12 comments:

  1. Hi dear Helen, your photos are absolutely stunning! The views, the skies, the lovely birthday celebration, the fountain, the lovely people and smiles! Fantastic! I will be 70 on October 27th! :)
    I also love your blog background and header, dear friend.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Linda. I am blessed with wonderful friends and a beautiful city to live in.

      Delete
  2. How wonderful your celebrations are! You and your friends are diehards despite the inclimate weather.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Just making the most of every day as you do too, Linda!

      Delete
  3. The sunset shades added a perfect background for Jan's birthday celebration! Good on you for being out and about even in the rain.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We were were worried that the overcast conditions would not be conducive to sunset colour but the final 15 mins was wonderful.

      Delete
  4. Joan Sutherland was a marvel! She and her husband made a marvelous team. The ladybug's spots got harder to see as I removed a really unpleasant bit of glare off it's back. Oddly, they show up more on my post of the same picture on Instagram. I enjoyed this post, Helen, very much.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the update on the lady bug. So glad the spots weren't lost.

      Delete
  5. Lovely autumn views and a fabulous birthday party.
    The concert must have been a splendid experience as well.
    Big hugs!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sara, we cherish every autumn view as they are so rare. As the concert was in City Hall it was quite an intimate performance. Hugs back to you.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Kim Fritzemeier15 June 2026 at 09:26

    You ladies know how to celebrate milestone birthdays, for sure!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kim, I am very fortunate to have these creative ladies as my friend. I love joining in and helping.

      Delete