The weekend for us has been fairly quiet with a trivia fundraising Saturday night and a Sunday BBQ with friends in the outer suburbs of Melbourne at the foothills of Dandenong mountain. Rather than post on our rather quiet weekend, I thought you might like some Melbourne news.
Friday night and Saturday morning started with heavy rainfall throughout most of Victoria. Although dry in our area as I left the front door for my morning ride, it wasn't long before the heavens opened once again.
Oh, how I hate riding in wet socks.
Melbourne started the weekend with a late week protest - quite nasty with police having to break up the protesters with force. I'm not sure what the protest was about, and I'm not sure if the protesters did either.
Something about the sharing of global wealth I believe. I happen to be up in the hills with work which was really nice to be away from the city.
NOTE: None of the photos shown did not emit from my camera but were stolen from the local newspaper websites, the Age and the Herald Sun as well as the Melbourne Festival website.
By the way, Queen Elizabeth II is in town later this week. I heard her speech from Canberra on the news. She really is a grand lady and very well informed. She arrives in Melbourne this week - hope we don't have protesters marring her visit.
I actually remember her visits before and during the Melbourne Olympic Games as she drove by our home on her way back from the athlete's village which was not far from our home. OMG, that was 55 years ago.
In entertainment, "RED DOG" a new Australian film has entered the records at number 21 highest grossing film to date. Others on the list are;
1. Crocodile Dundee (1986) — $107.13m
2. Babe (1995) — $54.36m
3. The Man from Snowy River (1982) — $51.54m
4. Crocodile Dundee II (1988) — $48.10m
5. Australia (2008) — $39.32m
6. Gallipoli (1981) — $39.06m
7. Alvin Purple (1973) — $37.76m
8. Mad Max 2 (1981) — $36.10m
9. Moulin Rouge (2001) — $35.71m
10. Happy Feet (2006) — $35.55m
11. Strictly Ballroom (1992) — $34.92
12. The King’s Speech (2010) — $31.05m
13. Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) — $30.85m
14. They're a Weird Mob (1966) - $26.9m
15. Young Einstein (1988) — $25.82m
16. The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert (1994) — $25.46m
17. Phar Lap (1983) — $25.17m
18. Muriel’s Wedding (1994) — $24.38m
19. The Dish (2000) — $24.18m
20. Mad Max (1979) — $21.54m
21. Red Dog (2011) — $20.37m (to date)
Maybe you would like to add a comment as to which were your best and worst Australian Films from this list!
I mentioned last week that the Melbourne Spring Carnival racing season started and this Saturday the Cox Plate was won by Black Caviar, a horse that is being placed on the same pedestal as the great Phar Lap.
The Melbourne Cup is not too far off - being the biggest annual racing event, Melburnians actually have a holiday for it in early November.
October is Melbourne Festival time with a whole month of culture (Kultcha in Oz talk). My son Mitch went to his first opera, an adaptation of Mozart's Magic Flute.
The program described it as such.
"Thirty South African performers stage a stunning music-theatre adaptation of Mozart's greatest operatic work: an explosion of choral song, marimbas, drums and township-style percussion celebrating the spirit of contemporary Africa".
The boy is maturing....
On the financial side of things - our dollar is holding up OK with the US$ @ $1.02 and the Euro @ .74c.
These are important to us with our May 2012 trip back to France.
Well, that's about it for now - time to get ready for the BBQ - nice day for it too. A sunny windless 26 degrees is just perfect.
Talk to you next Wednesday (Wednesday's in France) as we reminisce our overnight stay in Arromonches les Bains, site of the 1944 D-Day landings.
Friday night and Saturday morning started with heavy rainfall throughout most of Victoria. Although dry in our area as I left the front door for my morning ride, it wasn't long before the heavens opened once again.
Oh, how I hate riding in wet socks.
Melbourne started the weekend with a late week protest - quite nasty with police having to break up the protesters with force. I'm not sure what the protest was about, and I'm not sure if the protesters did either.
Something about the sharing of global wealth I believe. I happen to be up in the hills with work which was really nice to be away from the city.
NOTE: None of the photos shown did not emit from my camera but were stolen from the local newspaper websites, the Age and the Herald Sun as well as the Melbourne Festival website.
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I actually remember her visits before and during the Melbourne Olympic Games as she drove by our home on her way back from the athlete's village which was not far from our home. OMG, that was 55 years ago.
1. Crocodile Dundee (1986) — $107.13m
2. Babe (1995) — $54.36m
3. The Man from Snowy River (1982) — $51.54m
4. Crocodile Dundee II (1988) — $48.10m
5. Australia (2008) — $39.32m
6. Gallipoli (1981) — $39.06m
7. Alvin Purple (1973) — $37.76m
8. Mad Max 2 (1981) — $36.10m
9. Moulin Rouge (2001) — $35.71m
10. Happy Feet (2006) — $35.55m
11. Strictly Ballroom (1992) — $34.92
12. The King’s Speech (2010) — $31.05m
13. Picnic at Hanging Rock (1975) — $30.85m
14. They're a Weird Mob (1966) - $26.9m
15. Young Einstein (1988) — $25.82m
16. The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert (1994) — $25.46m
17. Phar Lap (1983) — $25.17m
18. Muriel’s Wedding (1994) — $24.38m
19. The Dish (2000) — $24.18m
20. Mad Max (1979) — $21.54m
21. Red Dog (2011) — $20.37m (to date)
Maybe you would like to add a comment as to which were your best and worst Australian Films from this list!
The Melbourne Cup is not too far off - being the biggest annual racing event, Melburnians actually have a holiday for it in early November.
The program described it as such.
"Thirty South African performers stage a stunning music-theatre adaptation of Mozart's greatest operatic work: an explosion of choral song, marimbas, drums and township-style percussion celebrating the spirit of contemporary Africa".
The boy is maturing....
On the financial side of things - our dollar is holding up OK with the US$ @ $1.02 and the Euro @ .74c.
These are important to us with our May 2012 trip back to France.
Well, that's about it for now - time to get ready for the BBQ - nice day for it too. A sunny windless 26 degrees is just perfect.
Talk to you next Wednesday (Wednesday's in France) as we reminisce our overnight stay in Arromonches les Bains, site of the 1944 D-Day landings.
Cycling with wet socks, yuck, I hate squelchy feet on the pedals. My last day on the trip from Lands End in Cornwall, to John O'Groats in Scotland was spent with squelching feet. The last thing I needed after cycling just over 1600 kms!!!
ReplyDeleteWe never go to the cinema, have not seen any of those films!!!!! This may change when we get to France our local cinema shows regular English films. With Nigel retired, maybe there will be more time to do these sort of things as they are quite reasonable. Diane
Diane - you must be my first blog reader every time - Thanks for that.
ReplyDeleteI think your 1600 kms is amazing but that's what keeps us young at heart.
As for films - just make sure you have a DVD player and we'll send you ours after we seen them 15 times at home.
It must be a great thing to look forward to, Nigel being retired.
We only have an old VHS player still...... we are very outdated!
ReplyDeleteAs for being first, I think it is just luck. The laptop is getting very little work at the moment but each time I have a quick look you seem to have just finished a post :) Diane
"The last wave" with Richard Chamberlain was the first Australian movie I saw when I came to the US. I have seen all the others (and more) from your list. I love Australian movies. Of course, I am sure only the really good ones are exported. "Rabbit foot fence" was amazing. There was one with Toni Collette and a Japanese man, lost in the bush too. Can't remember the name of it.
ReplyDeleteI'm looking forward to seeing Red Dog but Sue won't watch it - No sad animal films for her!!!
ReplyDeleteWet socks are a hazard when motorcycling, too. Horrible. Waterproof boots don't stay completely waterproof for very long, I have found.
ReplyDeleteMy favourite Aussie film is Strictly Ballroom - we have the DVD so we can watch it again and again !!
Hello Jean,
ReplyDeleteMelbourne is experiencing a fair bit of rain this week but not low temps.
Paul Macurio who is the lead actor in Stricly Ballroom now does a lifestyle TV program now. His father Gus was American who came to live in Australia in the 50s. He's mentioned in my book on motor racing here. Used to be a boxer back then.