Some graffiti down an alleyway near Collins Street, Melbourne, Australia.

Yesterday we did a quick exploration of Yeppoon before these rain clouds came through.

Yeppoon is a small coastal town near Rockhampton (a slightly less small town in central Queensland). From first impressions it feels like a surfer town, but a local friend tells me that the surf is pretty tame – the Great Barrier Reef stops most of the big waves. Maybe it was just the humongous Rip Curl shop on the main street. It reminded me a bit of Manly in Sydney.

We had dinner at Footlights, who describe themselves as providing ”a sumptuous three-course dinner with a brilliant two hour show performed by a professional team who have almost 3,600 shows and 27 years under their belts”. The dinner was slightly better than hospital food (I’ve had a lot over the years), and the show was fun most of the time, but there were skits that didn’t draw a single chuckle from the crowd. Still, I would recommend it to friends, as there is little other entertainment in the area.

Captured from the top of the front gate of Nanzenji Temple, Kyoto, Japan.

A concrete and tile shrine at Wat Pho, Bangkok, Thailand.

These are Whitestem Paperflower (Psilostrophe cooperi), a profusely flowering plant that dries cream (the original flower is yellow) and have the texture of paper. The paper flowers then hang around for a long time and look great.