Pictures from Sydney and Cairns!

[valis2]

	sydneygrave2 Rookwood Necropolis picture. One of my favorites. The building is empty, one of several empty buildings there.
	sydneygrave1 Rookwood Necropolis picture. I love the flowers in this picture.
	sydneygrave3 Rookwood Necropolis image. This is towards the end of my visit. I was so tired at this point and so sick that I didn't feel up to taking a lot more pictures, but I did take this one, and I like it.
	sydneygrave4 Rookwood Necropolic picture. You just can't imagine how big this place is.
	sydneygrave11 Rookwood Necropolis picture. That is not a tree. That is a yucca stalk. The biggest yuccas I've ever seen.
	sydneygrave9 Rookwood Necropolis picture. Love this. There is no marker left.
	sydneygrave10 Rookwood Necropolis picture. There evidently was a very talented local carver during this timeframe because his/her work is on a handful or so markers, and the flowers are fabulous.
	sydneygrave8 Rookwood Necropolis picture. One of the few graves with stone tops that has remained intact.
	sydneygrave7 Roodwood Necropolis picture. This is beautifully carved.
	sydneygrave6 Rookwood Necropolis picture.
	sydneygrave5 Rookwood Necropolis picture. Several graves had iron or stone walls built around them. Even one of the modern cemeteries has the same phenomenon. A tour guide mentioned that it is an Italian thing. Don't know if that's true.
	kurandascape3 View from Jack's place. This is the place that most looked like Australia to me.
	cairnsscape Landscape view from Jack's place, near where we fed rock wallabies.
	cairnscape3 Another fabulous view from Jack's place. This stream had a waterfall in back, but I couldn't quite get to it in my sandals.
	kurandascape2 View from train to Kuranda skyrail. This reminded me of LotR. Heh.
	kurandascape View from the cable car down into Kuranda's rain forest. Many of the trees have light trunks and light colored leaves.
	cairnsparrot Parrot at aviary.
	kurandatree Enormous tree, viewed from one of the trails that one can take at stops on the skyrail. It was beautiful.

Comments

[deepforestowl.livejournal.com]

lovely pics dear! Just lovely! so jealous!

[bob-the-mighty.livejournal.com]

I so want to go tromp around that graveyard!

>:-D

[valis2.livejournal.com]

It was really amazing. http://home.iprimus.com.au/eckadoubledecka/ is a group called Friends of Rookwood, devoted to taking care of the Necropolis. They have some history and pics on their site.

It is arranged by religious faith, and each denomination has its own area of the cemetery. It is such a large cemetery that you'd really have to have two days to see it all, honest.

I have more pictures...stop by some evening and you can see all ninety that I took there. ;)

[bob-the-mighty.livejournal.com]

ONLY 90???

>;-D

[valis2.livejournal.com]

I would have taken two hundred if I hadn't been sick and the sun hadn't set.

Australia - Rockwood

[(Anonymous)]

Valis2
Awesome - I live in Australia - Melbourne Victoria and this is the first time I have seen their cemetery site. I have heard lots about the cemetery from various newsgroups and I will be posting your comments (if you don't mind that is). Makes me want to take a holiday just to go see it. I go around old country towns transcribe and photograph the old cemeteries for my own pleasure, so I can imagine how you felt walking the grounds of Rockwood. Thanks so much for sharing it with us.
Anja - Australia

Re: Australia - Rockwood

[valis2.livejournal.com]

I don't mind a bit. You should definitely visit...I've been to several cemeteries and this has got to be the most impressive!

[virtual-gravy.livejournal.com]

I have never heard of the Rookwood Necropolis but I will need to go now that I looked at this. Thanks for turing me onto it.

[valis2.livejournal.com]

It is incredibly worthwhile to see it. It is absolutely enormous, one of the largest cemeteries in the world. It is a forty minute taxi drive from the city, or a fifty minute train ride. I would suggest the train ride, as it is fairly economical, compared to the $50 tab in the taxi. There is a train station west of the west entrance of the cemetery.

It is arranged like a wagon wheel. Each section radiates out from it, and there are sections for each denomination. Some sections are much more interesting than others. The section with the mausoleums is quite photogenic, but by the time I got there the sun had almost set. :(

There are ravens there too, but they spook easy.