Movie - "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them"

Hello Friends,

While I was on holidays, I went to a fancy multi-cinema place in Perth, Western Australia. I was excited to see this movie. "Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them" welcomes fans to the next magical world created by J.K. Rowling. 

The story is set in 1926. A fantastic beast is on the loose and wrecking New York City. The magical beast had escaped from Newt Scamander‘s plain brown suitcase (world) and Newt must get it back.

Added to his woes is the witches and wizards bureaucracy of NYC and their demands. They don’t want their secret existence discovered by the ordinary citizens, the ones who don’t have any magical abilities.

In the movie USA, these folks are known as the “No-Maj” as opposed to the “Muggle” of the UK. The third wheel in the story is a creepy family with an abusive mother who wants to get rid of the witches in the city.

I’m not going to write any movie spoilers here. In places. my mind did muddle along with the plot of the movie. However, I loved leaving the ordinary world to enjoy the fantasy magical realms of J.K. Rowling.

The hero, Newt, had his moments when he reminded me of Dr Who, the time travelling lord from BBC television. Newt was a magical zoologist, a restrained fellow, who stayed true to himself throughout the story. He had a No-Maj companion, Jacob, who was a cannery worker and a man down on his luck. Jacob was a delightful character who had a cheery smile when good things happened to him during his adventures with Newt and the fantastic beasts.

Newt and Jacob formed a beast rescue team with two ladies. One of the ladies, Tina, was a wand-waving witch. While her sister, Queenie, was a mind-reader. I giggled at the scene when the two ladies offered Newt and Jacob a bed for the night. The men were given twin single beds which were positioned with a respectable distance between them. Newt wore his day clothes under the blankets. Jacob sat propped up as the ladies delivered a cup of hot cocoa before they went to sleep. It seemed quirky British or very vintage for two grown men to be treated this way.

You might need some tissues for the final scenes of the movie. Another fantastic beast movie is planned for November 2017, and there could be 2 or three more movies after that. You can find out more about the first movie and read many news articles over at J.K Rowling’s Pottermore website, here's the link, Pottermore

I couldn’t say goodbye without including the movie trailer.

Have a fantastic weekend. 

♥ Ashlyn

Movie posters in this blog were sourced from;

http://www.impawards.com/2016/fantastic_beasts_and_where_to_find_them_ver4.html

Humpback Whales

Hello Friends,

I recently visited the Aquarium of Western Australia (AQWA) in Perth where I watched a video about Humpback Whales. The imagery touched my heart and I was inspired to write a blog about the majestic whales.

Many years ago, I visited the Albany Whaling Station which is located on the south coast of Western Australia. The last day of whaling at Albany took place in 1978, and ended 178 years of commercial hunting.

Each year, humpback whales naturally migrate down the coast of Western Australia and it was at AQWA that I learnt that the mother whales and their calves were often targeted in whale hunts due to their slow rate of swimming together. It was a sad revelation, but there were many other positive, heartfelt moments that I experienced and would like to share with you.

In 1978, the King of Tonga (a small island nation in the South Pacific), issued a royal decree to ban whale hunting. The grandson of a whale hunter appeared in the AQWA video. He said the whales were the guardians of his people. The whale population had dwindled due to the killing of mothers and calves in the tropical waters. Now the grandson teaches people about the whales, while still respecting his traditional culture.

Whales are also sacred animals to the Maori people of New Zealand. I once met an Australian Aboriginal woman in my local town who told me that her people can hear the arrival, the song of the whales when they swim into the waters of the Great Australian Bight, which is located thousands of kilometers away.

There’s something ancient and mysterious about the connection between whales and people. I don’t understand it, but I felt it for a brief time at AQWA.

Migration

According to the AQWA video, around the world, there are 15 migration paths for the Humpback Whales. Simply put, the whales migrate to feed and also to breed. They feed in the two cold, sub-polar regions of the Arctic and Antarctica. The feed of fish is converted to blubber and might have to last the whales six months before they eat again.

While the whales breed in the warm or temperate oceans of the world, for example, Hawaii and the South Pacific islands. At present, some of the shipping lanes also cross the migration paths, which pose a danger of collision with the whales.

Aqua Acrobatics

Humpbacks are acrobatic whales. Breaching is when a whale breaks the surface of the water, leaps up and falls back down. It could be a display with the crash of fins and back slaps into the ocean. Tails hitting the water, and throwing up sea spray. Trumpeting calls. Booms and thrashing. Or the blasting sound of whales blowing air after a dive.

Here’s a video of a friendly juvenile Humpback whale breaching.

Bubble Net Fishing

Bubble net fishing is a technique used by the whales to hunt krill, herring, sardines or anchovy in a team. Co-operation is needed. The whales dive down deep and get beneath the school of fish that they want to drive up to the surface of the ocean and eat. One of the whales circles up and around the fish and expertly releases a spiraling column of air bubbles which acts as a net. It’s hard for the small fish to escape. They are trapped and forced to swim upwards. 

Then another whale releases a loud sound which frightens the small fish and creates panic. The whales break the surface in a circle. They open their mouths to catch the fish using the baleen of their mouth, and swallow. Humpback whales don’t have teeth so the baleen acts like bristles and catches/filters food from the sea water.

The next video was made by BBC Earth and has some spectacular imagery of the whales breaching in a circle, and opening their mouths to feed.

Whale Song

The most frequent and loudest singers recorded so far are the male humpback whales. The females commonly live in deep water with their calves. There is a possibility that the mothers sing a different and very low octave song, more research is needed.

The humpback whale sings with its nose pointing down to the bottom of the ocean. The whales put bits of sound together into a song. It’s not a random noise. The same song can be sung for a whole season.

Hearing the whale song was haunting. They made ancient sounds. Some of the whales sounded like a violin, sometimes a scratchy one. It was the music of the ocean. Powerful and mysterious chants from the depths of old briny.

Mother and Calf

The mother whale breeds and births her calf in the warm sub-tropical waters about every two to three years. In the AQWA video, I saw some beautiful images of the mother and calf swimming closely together, rolling around in the water, keeping physical contact with each other, with their fins, or skin to skin, like whales embracing.

The young whale learns how to live as a whale by copying the actions and sounds of its mother. She feeds the calf on fat rich milk for it to grow quickly. Then they must face the danger of predators as they migrate to the cooler waters for fish hunting lessons and to eat.

The deep blue indigo color of the ocean lent a mystical effect to the mother whale interacting with her young one. Life is sacred.

The next video shows a special opportunity when a woman and champion swimmer, Tanya Streeter, was able to swim with a mother and her calf.

Thanks for reading my whale blog.

Enjoy your weekend. 

♥ Ashlyn

AQWA --Aquarium of Western Australia

Shark in the underwater tunnel at AQWA (Tourism Media)

Hello Friends,

Last week during my holiday-by-the-sea in Perth, I visited AQWA – the Aquarium of Western Australia. It’s a wonderful place to look at the beautiful and dangerous marine life from the west coast of Australia. Take an under-water journey from the icy-cold waters of the Southern Ocean to the tropical wonderland of coral reefs in the far north.

the entrance to AQWA

I thought I’d share some information and photographs about the colorful Aquarium. 
AQWA is located in a northern suburb of Perth at the Hillary’s Boat Harbor.

the view to the ocean from the Aquarium sea wall

The movement of the arms of sea anemones and jellyfish in the water currents are mesmerizing.

sea anemone waving in the water. The orange and white clown anemonefish made famous by the 'Finding Nemo' movie swims among the arms of the anemone.

the delicate tentacles of the jellyfish. When I was a child swimming on the east coast of Australia, I was stung several times by jellyfish. They were typically accidents, when ocean waves washed the jellyfish onto my arm or leg. The sting really hurts until you can get the venom treated with vinegar etc. 

purple/blue moon jellyfish, just beautiful watching their gentle swimming motion as they pump the water in and out of their bell-shaped bodies. photo source: AQWA (Tourism Media)

The dangerous creatures to see include the sharks in the underwater tunnel. For a closer look, you can snorkel or dive with the sharks. There’s also octopus curled around nooks in the craggy limestone rocks. Stingrays glide over white sand in the shallow pools. And “old salty”, the salt water crocodile strikes a pose.

Never smile at a crocodile. "Old salty" won't hurt you, he's stuffed or made of plastic 

a sea lion can give a person a nasty bite

Over at the coastal lagoon, there’s living corals and a multitude of swimming fish.

Finally you can watch mermaids swim. Here’s a short video from the Perth Mermaids performing in the underwater tunnel.

During my visit to AQWA, I watched a touching video about Humpback Whales. I plan to blog about the whales next week.

Romancing the sea,

I love the moody ocean and its creatures.

Enjoy your weekend. 

♥ Ashlyn

AQWA website; https://www.aqwa.com.au/

AQWA tourism media photos were sourced from; https://www.expedia.co.jp/en/Aquarium-Of-Western-Australia-Hillarys.d6054006.Vacation-Attraction

Victorian Architecture of Fremantle, Western Australia

When the Fremantle Market Hall first opened in 1897, visitors would arrive by horse and cart.

source: Fremantle Markets

Hello Friends,

During the week, I left my outback home and visited the city of Fremantle which is located on the west coast of Australia. I’d like to share some history and photographs of the city’s much-loved historic architecture.

Victoria Hall was built between 1896 and 1897 as a church hall for the St John’s Parish. It was renamed for the diamond jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1897. In this photograph I took a few years ago, there's a little white mermaid perched on the center round window ledge.

The city of Fremantle is located at the mouth of the Swan River about 19 kilometers south-west of Perth—the capital city of Western Australia.  Fremantle is known for its Victorian Era architecture which was built by British convicts.

The city was founded in 1829 as a free, British colony with approximately four hundred settlers. The first inhabitants settled around the banks of the Swan River. Life was tough. Clearing the native vegetation revealed sand and not “good earth” for farming. 

There was a depression in 1843 which almost ended the colony. By 1847, the settlers had decided they needed manual labor to build roads and infrastructure. The settlers petitioned the Home Government for a gang of forty convicts for the construction works.

A doorway at the Fremantle Town Hall

 The “free” status of the colony ended in 1850, and Fremantle became a penal colony, a destination for jailed, law-breakers from the United Kingdom. 234 juvenile offenders were transported on 7 ships from Britain to become voluntary trade apprentices.  Then 75 convicts shipped from Portsmouth arrived in 1850. 9000 more male convicts came before 1868.

The poor blighters began the task of constructing the roads and city from the local, grey limestone. In the 1890’s, there was an international gold rush in Western Australia.  New prosperity added luxury and splendor to the buildings of Fremantle. Many of the Victorian built properties are now heritage listed.

Fremantle also has a significant maritime history. The port became a western gateway to Australia for immigrants from Europe during 1940 – 1960.

A different taste of Fremantle, the water fountain at the Port Mill, Bed & Breakfast which was originally built in 1862 as a flour mill. Like living in a stately French provincial manor or a grand tuscan villa? Limestone walls, flower boxes and charming juliette balconies. The accommodation complex was completely restored in 1993 to resemble the old historic mill. (source: http://www.portmillbb.com.au/)

I would also like to mention the traditional owners of the land known as the Nyoongar people. The indigenous tribes lived around the Swan River where there was rich food and resources. The country was alive with ancient spirits and dreaming sites.

Nyoongar people belong to the Bibbullmum nation of tribes—mother earth, the dirt we walk on.

Contact with white settlers lead to indigenous resistance against the laws and guns, imprisonment and massacre, and ultimately to atrocities committed by both sides.

Celtic patterned glass at Rosie O’Grady’s Tavern, an Irish pub in Fremantle which is one of the oldest and grandest hotel, but no longer operating. The property was taken over by new owners and is now called the Federal Hotel.

Fremantle is a dynamic city with a hard history. The city has evolved into a multi-cultural, cosmopolitan place. It’s now a destination for food, shopping and culture. I love walking among the old buildings and soaking up the vibrant atmosphere. Big international cargo ships are regularly berthed at the port and can be seen as you drive around the harbor-side streets.

My favorite photograph of a Victorian terrace house with pots of red geranium flowers. Home is where the heart is. This narrow, two-level home is made from blocks of limestone. The sash windows, have engraved glass side patterns and lace curtains.  

That’s my short tour of Fremantle come to an end. 

I hope you can join me again.

Enjoy your weekend. 

♥ Ashlyn

Sources of history information: 
http://www.fremantlewesternaustralia.com.au/fremantle-history.htm
https://www.creativespirits.info/australia/western-australia/perth/perths-aboriginal-history