July 19-20
Janet and Peter are delightful people! And Peter makes a great outdoor fire to sit and relax in front of, especially with a great glass of wine
Janet had a gallery opening that she was in charge of on Saturday afternoon. She had also invited the local basketmakers over to meet with me while I was here. The afternoon was quite pleasant, sharing info about materials and dyes and enjoying the exhibit work. (The exhibit was based on a workshop given by an aboriginal woman (the first to get a doctorate!) exploring the two cultural sides of Australian peoples; it includes kangaroo hides and responses the participants had to the week of workshop.)
Sunday morning brought a trip into the city to see some of the museums and exhibits there and in the library.
Didn’t have a chance to walk along the riverfront (which is very nicely done) but we did eat outside and enjoy the sunshine. They are in the midst of winter – the nights were cool to chilly (probably in the low fifties) and the days warmed up to the upper 60s or so. They were also experiencing a drought and were very pleased to get the rain that was happening all while we were there.
Sunday afternoon was spent with a knitter friend and his partner from upper Queensland who were in town for family events. I had showed him how to make a mobius shawl the last time I was in Australia so he brought along all his successes and changes to show me. He was also interested in the bilums as he had been in Papua New Guinea years before and had tried to learn it then – his being male had been an impediment to his being taught. Good food, good wine, good company.
