Marlee in the morning

"An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day"

(Henry David Thoreau) 

How true.  There is nothing quite so beautiful as Kings Park in the morning just as the sun is rising, the river's surface is like glass and the birds are having a jolly old time.

Another Sunday morning and another (mini) milestone.  I got as far as Roe Garden this morning.  The retic had just been on so there were delicious fresh earthy smells coming from the dense shrubs around the Marlee Pavilion.

I passed a spot which gave up the perfect view of the City and ended up retracing my steps to capture it.  Perth definitely put on its best face this morning.

Looking down from Roe Garden

Dinosaurs in a post-Valentine world

It was Valentine's Day yesterday and my beloved did not disappoint.  Once again my kitchen benchtop is graced with glorious flowers in white, yellow and purple hues.

This week a dear friend asked me to be her son's godmother when he gets baptised next month.  I feel very honoured and very excited!  I rushed out and bought him... a dinosaur?  

A dinosaur seeking shade beneath the Valentine's Day flowers

Not really sure what you get a 6-month old baby when they get baptised but the dinosaur just looked especially cute.

Dinosaur mugshot

Morning

There's something magical about the early morning light when the rising sun just touches the tree canopies.  The park is rising from its slumber, the birds start making a racket and emerging from the gloom, a lemon-scented gum gets caught in a shaft of sunlight.

Sunrise

It's the promise of a good day.  Of warmth and dazzling light.  And hope.

Dusk

Kings Park bookended my day perfectly today.  We savoured the morning rays on our walk and at dusk we took in the lilac sky with a slow drive along the avenue lined with lemon-scented gums.

Kings Park at dusk

Three Pagodas Walk

It has been such a painfully slow recovery in so many ways.  It has now been eight weeks since the accident, the splint is coming off in a few days (relief!) but it's still going to be many months before teeth can be repaired.  So it's still a bit of a waiting game.  Happily I can eat more although dreams of chocolate croissants and granola may just have to remain as dreams for a while yet!

I've really missed my weekend walks and it has been so long since my 'normal' Sunday stroll that my fitness levels have whittled away to zero.  So begins the long hard walk to build up stamina again.  Ross is ever the trooper and has been accompanying me on walks after work and on the weekends - ever so slowly increasing in length.

This morning at 6am we were out in the Park enjoying the first rays of the Sunday sun and a new record.  Maybe not far in terms of distance but it felt like a bit of a milestone.

First Pagoda - peeking out from under the boughs of the Australian Cedar

The walk to Second Pagoda has become our 'usual' weekday walk as I tend to run out of energy by the time we get here.

Second Pagoda

Hooray, made it to Third Pagoda today, down to the bottom of the hill and more importantly, back up it again.   It's a very special place and more than a little mystical in the early morning stillness.  

Third Pagoda - Women's Memorial Garden

And magic is definitely something I could do with at the moment.