In the beginning…

There is an island of houses caught between the southern motorway and the steepness of the hills behind it; I’m calling it upper Caversham.  Even with in this area there is a diversion between the houses to the right along Barnes Drive and the houses to the left along Rockyside Terrace.

The birth of a Surveyed Otago.

This area is where Thomson (our first surveyor)  lived and took his points from when he began surveying Otago.  Therefore this is when Dunedin as we know began.    Ranfurly has a statue of Thomson; Dunedin has a sign outside a quarry and a road named after him.  Maybe we should do better than this for the beginning of our province?

Caversham Rail Tunnel

It was hard to capture a photo of the entrance of the Caversham Tunnel -it’s very leafy and quite well hidden.  However I’m not sure if I would want to travel through it after the Christchurch earthquakes, but for the brave it would make a nice flat trip to Green Island.

Views

The views are magnificent from here; the houses are at the right height and angle to have  sweeping vistas.

Houses

According to local folk-lore this house was originally built for unmarried mothers. It looks very smart now.

This  secret area seems to allow home owners to  give expression to their individuality.My favourites were the little doggies on the doorstep with their welcome sign and the pretty pond.

Motorway

The area has been a hive of activity with the motorway extension.

Surfs Up 16/1/12

 

One of my husband’s relatives has moved into Fulton Home in Eastbourne Street so the next few walks are going to radiate out from this location.

Garden sculpture

Immediately over the road from Fulton Home this house captures my attention with wonderful classical sculpture dotted amongst the garden.

St Peter’s

St Peter’s Church feels very English; the surrounding streets lined with trees amplifying this feeling.  I would like to have gone inside but although the outer door was open it only gave a tantalising glimpse of the locked interior.  I have attended church fairs and have great memories of pikelets with jam and cream.  I want one now!

 

 

Surfs up

Just looking at this letter box makes you feel happy.  The owner has gone to heaps of trouble and must have been satisfied with the result as they have signed their work.  NZ Post could run a letter box competition.

Lace

It is hard not to take photos of every cute little cottage with lace on their verandas; blue and white combinations work very well on these houses.   Some are tucked away behind hedges others boldly face right onto the street.

Black velvet

I meet this friendly cat warming itself on the pavement.  Just as well Red the dog wasn’t with me!

People

Ending my walk I passed two young people having a very heated ‘conversation’;   I was invisible to them.  However I did feel the young man made a mistake when he said ‘If only you would do as I tell you!’  That received an explosive reply.

Country Corstorphine: 4/12/11

Spring lanes

There is more to Corstorphine than state houses.  At the top of the hill in Cleminston Avenue the air is the best in all of Dunedin.  The air seems to have a texture to it; developed as it roars up from the south pole past the Maungatuas straight to Cleminston Avenue.  Nothing compares to taking gulps of that air.

Corstophine was developed as an estate and there are interlinking ally ways to the streets.  These are what I am featuring in my photos; I want to share the prettiness of Corstorphine.

The area is an eclectic mix of different types of houses; state houses to the grandeur of Corstorphine House  in Milburn Street with everything else in between.  Some house have fantastic views (Skibo Street) others are nestled in hidden valleys (Corstorphine Road).

Dogs love this park!

Daffodil Daze 27/9/11

So much for my good intentions but this is a new year a new day a new beginning.  I have done some walks so I am retrospectively going to talk about them.

Spring in Dunedin

New beginnings

I try to view spring in Dunedin but you have to be quick before it disappears.  This walk started at the Dunedin Railway Station; it was surrounded by a froth of pinky white blossom. It wasn’t that long ago that the road ran straight past the station and there were no gardens in front.  We are so lucky that it has been restored and we can now share it with the tourists and their cameras.

Daffodils on Cumberland

Less manicured than the Railway gardens are the trees on Cumberland Street.  I was trying to capture the wildness of the daffodils but was struck instead by the shadows of the trees on the footpath.

The Oval

Driving past the Oval all you see is an expanse of flat greenness.  But the Oval hides its secrets.  Around the borders are hedges and shrubs making hidden path ways and then in spring the bank beside the motorway bursts into a riot of spring.  Only it is nearly impossible to view the daffodils.  The can’t be viewed by car and even walking among them is difficult.  The photos look like you could be in deepest country, who would know there was a motorway right beside you?