Gold Coast - Day and Night

One do not expected to find a Statue of David at the Gold Coast of Queensland, Australia, but there is a replica of the real one at one of its shopping mall. David is a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture created between 1501 and 1504, by the Italian artist Michelangelo.

This posting however is not about Michelangelo art work. It is about one of the most visited place of Queensland, the Gold Coast, a coastal city located in the South East of the state.

The city is 94 km south of the state capital Brisbane. It is the second most populous city in the state after Brisbane, the sixth most populous city in the country, and also the most populous non-capital city in Australia. You can read all about this and more from the Wikipedia links.

During the day, the Gold Coast is known primarily for its beaches. The city consists of 57 kilometres of coastline with some of the most popular surf breaks in Australia and in the world. Within the Gold Coast is a suburb called Surfers Paradise a major tourist destination, the jewel of Queensland's Gold Coast. Surfers Paradise is just 30 minutes from the Gold Coast Airport and its life beat is centred around the Cavill Mall, with easy access to the Surfers Paradise beach, cafes, restaurants, fashion and shopping malls. There are accommodation options to suit every budget.

The photo above shows a typical day at the beach and at Cavill Mall. For day time activities, the Gold Coast is not limited to just Surfers Paradise and the beach. There are a number of theme parks and family attractions like the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary, the Warner Bros. Movie World, Dreamworld, Sea World, and many others, which will be postings of their own and for another time.

Surfers Paradise has its own unique nightlife hub. If you are looking for that unique Surfers Paradise souvenir gift to take home, be sure to get down to the Surfers Paradise Beachfront markets every Wednesday and Friday night between 5:30pm and 10:00pm. It is just the place for bargain hunters and after-dinner strollers, making their way among the 100+ market stalls, along the Surfers Paradise Foreshore, north and south of Cavill Mall. There are also live entertainers, some of which do not like videos taken of their performance.

If the night market is not your scene, there are an array of nightclubs, pubs and bars all within a two kilometre range and most operating into the early hours of the night.

For more images of Surfer Paradise click here.


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Jesus You Are My Healer - Don Moen

Proverbs 4:20-22 (NLT)
²⁰Pay attention, my child, to what I say. Listen carefully. ²¹Don't lose sight of my words. Let them penetrate deep within your heart, ²²for they bring life and radiant health to anyone who discovers their meaning.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NLT)
⁵Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. ⁶Seek his will in all you do, and he will direct your paths.

Mark 2:17 (NLT)
¹⁷When Jesus heard this, he told them, "Healthy people don't need a doctor--sick people do. I have come to call sinners, not those who think they are already good enough."

1 Peter 2:24 (NLT)
²⁴He personally carried away our sins in his own body on the cross so we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. You have been healed by his wounds!

Mt Dandenong - Tulip Festival

It's already spring here at Down Under. It is a perfectly good time of the year to be at the Tulip Festival, at Mt Dandenong, just an hour drive from the city of Melbourne. But this early in spring is also a time of pollens in the air, rain and quick weather changes; one of the attractions or complaint of Melbourne. As an aside, Melbourne is known for its four season in one day experience.

This spring I got the running nose and the shivers, so did not make it to this year tulip festival. But I so want you to get a glimpse of the tulips flowers and the feel of the festival which lasts for 3 weeks, but has 4 weekend, from mid-Sept to early October. There is a different theme for each week-end; Turkish, Dutch, Irish and a Food, Wine and Jazz week-end, not necessarily in that order.

It is one of those all day family outing that you have to bring along your cameras and/or videos to just capture that family moment.

So I am posting last year '2011 view of the tulip farm.

It was a cold, at times windy, at times sunny and cloudy day with some light rain in between. Still, the weather could not remove the joy of seeing all the colourful tulip flowers on display and in such abundant numbers, over half a million Tulips made up of more than a hundred different varieties.

Apart from the flowers, there are also sculptures on display. The work is from sculptors from across Australia, exhibiting their works between the colourful beds of the tulips.

There is even a little something for the children; fairies, a wishing well, leprechauns and even llamas, a domesticated South American pack animal.

Not forgetting the shoppers, there are some stalls and a small gift shop to take back with them, a little something of the place and the day, like their favourite tulips for their own patch at home.

The address of the Tesselaar Tulip Farm is, 357 Monbulk Road Silvan, Victoria 3795.

Note there is an entry fee to the farm, during the festival.


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Aireys Inlet - One More Lighthouse

I have been to Aireys Inlet a number of times and even brought a number of oversea friends here. One of the must stop places to or from the Twelve Apostles or the Great Ocean Road. Aireys Inlet is located between Anglesea and Lorne. It is a small coastal inlet and town located on the Great Ocean Road, southwest of Melbourne.

This place never disappoint especially on a nice blue sky day. The main highlight of the place is the lighthouse. You'll spot her as you travel the Great Ocean Road. To the locals she is affectionately known as 'The White Queen'. Its actual name however, is The Split Point Lighthouse. The lighthouse is not only a beacon to seafarers but also to travellers on the Great Ocean Road.

The lighthouse was built in 1891 and stands 34 metres tall. Walking tracks near the lighthouse offer great scenic views over along the coast.

The car park to the lighthouse is a short 500m walk. Though there are ample car park spaces in the area, on a good day like today, you may find yourself competing with many others who have come to also see the queen or for some lunch at the Willows Tea House, which is located right next to the lighthouse. Souvenirs and gifts are also avaliable.

Also, located at Aireys Inlet, is the Eagle Rock Marine Sanctuary. This park protects 17ha of ocean waters and projects about 300m offshore. Composed of both hard basalt and rubbly limestone, the cliffs are full of caves and ledges.

The shore is covered with boulders and offshore there are two large rocks: Eagle Rock and Table Rock. Table Rock has been levelled by the waves whereas Eagle Rock is a tall volcanic stack capped by limestone.

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Hosanna - Hillsong United

John 1:14 (NIV)
¹⁴The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and
truth.

Matthew 21:9 (NIV)
⁹The crowds that went ahead of him and those that followed shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”. “Hosanna in the highest!”


Galatians 1:4-5 (NLT)
⁴He died for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live. ⁵That is why all glory belongs to God through all the ages of eternity. Amen.

Who Is The Holy Spirit?

John 3:5-6 (NLT)
⁵Jesus replied, "The truth is, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. ⁶Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven.

The Holy Spirit is the most mysterious member of the Trinity, which includes God the Father, God the Son (Jesus) and God the Spirit (or the Holy Spirit). Many struggle with the idea of God being three persons, yet one. Quite honestly, we will never fully grasp the concept this side of heaven.

Some, however, have wrongly thought of the Holy Spirit as more of an "it" than a "he". That is probably due in part to biblical descriptions of him as being like the wind or coming upon Jesus in the form of a dove, among other comparisons.

Yet these descriptions must be balanced with the descriptions of the other members of the Trinity. For instance, Jesus referred to himself as "the bread of life" and "the good shepherd." In the same way, God the Father is referred to as "a refuge" and "a consuming fire." Does this mean that Jesus is a loaf of bread or a sheep farmer, or that the Father is a pile of rocks or a blast furnace? Of course not! These are simply metaphors used in Scripture to help communicate God's character.

Likewise, the unique descriptions attributed to the Holy Spirit do not imply that the Holy Spirit is merely some "force" or "power." Jesus said this about the Holy Spirit: "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth ....He will tell you about the future" (John 16:13). Note the use of the pronoun he. The Holy Spirit has a distinct personality and he also has specific work that he wants to do in our lives as followers of Jesus Christ.

Explore what the Bible says about him.

How The Holy Spirit Works With The Father And The Son
Who The Holy Spirit Helps
Why God Gives Us The Holy Spirit
How The Holy Spirit Works In Out Life
Why Christians Need the Holy Spirit
Our Peace Continues As We Follow The Holy Spirit

New Believer's Bible
Ps Greg Laurie

Great Ocean Road

This archway near Aireys Inlet mark the entrance to the Great Ocean Road, even though the Great Ocean Road lies between the cities of Torquay and Warrnambool. It provided me with a great photo opportunity to mark this winter break to Lorne, since I do not recall it being here, the last time I used this road to the Twelve Apostles.

It was built as a tribute to the soldiers from the First World War who was engaged in the construction of the Great Ocean Road. Alongside the arch is a sculpture to commemorating the returned servicemen, which was commissioned and placed during the 75th anniversary of the road celebrations in 2007.

The Great Ocean road itself is listed as a 243km long Australian National Heritage, dedicated to the casualties of World War I. Three thousand Australian returned soldiers and sailors of the First World War (1914 - 1918) built the Great Ocean Road between 1919 and 1932. They had survived the war in which 330,000 Australian volunteered to fight in Europe, Turkey and the Middle East, 60,000 were killed and 160,000 wounded.

It is one of the most visited region in Victoria with spectacular scenic ocean drives, impressive natural formations such as the Loch Ard Gorge, London Bridge, with the famous Twelve Apostles taking the spotlight.

The list below shows the distance between the various cities beginning from Melbourne, along the Great Ocean Road to Warrnambool and to Port Fairy.

Distances

Melbourne to Geelong - 75 km

Geelong to Queenscliff - 30 km

Queenscliff to Anglesea - 54 km

Anglesea to Lorne - 28 km

Lorne to Apollo Bay - 45 km

Apollo Bay to Port Campbell - 103 km

Port Campbell to Warrnambool - 66 km

Warrnambool to Port Fairy - 29 km

These are some of the beach and coastal scenic views along the Great Ocean Road, taken from the various car parks along the road. One such stop is called the Devils Elbow. An odd name to name a place but I could not find the reason why. It is however the part of the road with a very sharp turn, into an amazing distracting view of the coast.

More images of the Great Ocean Road and archway, click here.