HEAVENLY LIGHT

PSALM 97:

1 The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice; let the multitude of isles be glad thereof.

² Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne.

³ A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about.

⁴ His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled.

⁵ The hills melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

⁶ The heavens declare his righteousness, and all the people see his glory.

⁷ Confounded be all they that serve graven images, that boast themselves of idols: worship him, all ye gods.

⁸ Zion heard, and was glad; and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of thy judgments, O Lord.

⁹ For thou, Lord, art high above all the earth: thou art exalted far above all gods.

¹⁰ Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.

¹¹ Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.

¹² Rejoice in the Lord, ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.

This post is part of the Psalm Sunday meme.

Happy Easter if you are celebrating it today!

JAMA MASJID, OLD DELHI

The Masjid-i Jahān-Numā (the 'World-reflecting Mosque'), commonly known as the Jama Masjid of Delhi, is the principal mosque of Old Delhi in India. Commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan,built this mosque in the year 1650 AD and completed in the year 1656 AD, it is the largest and best-known mosque in India. It lies at the beginning of the Chawri Bazar Road, a very busy central street of Old Delhi.The later name, Jama Masjid, refers to the weekly Friday noon congregation prayers of Muslims, Jummah, which are usually done in a mosque, the "congregational mosque" or "jāmi' masjid". The courtyard of the mosque can hold up to twenty-five thousand worshippers. The mosque also houses several relics in a closet in the north gate, including an antique copy of the Qur'an written on deer skin.

This post is part of the Weekend in Black & White meme,
and also part of the Weekly TopShot meme.

SYDNEY FROM THE AIR

Sometimes the clouds part just at the right time and sunlight from the rising sun converts the scene below into a golden stage ready for all sorts of magical action!

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme.

CONVOLVULUS SABATIUS

Convolvulus sabatius, or blue rock bindweed, is a species of flowering plant in the family Convolvulaceae, native to Italy and North Africa, and often seen in cultivation. It is a woody-stemmed trailing perennial plant, growing to 20 cm in height. It has slightly hairy leaves and light blue to violet flowers, often with a lighter centre, which are 2.5–5 cm in diameter.

This species is often sold under the synonymous name C. mauritanicus. Although a perennial, it is best treated as an annual in colder climates. It is suited to window boxes and containers and prefers a sunny situation with good drainage. Tip pruning encourages new growth and flowering. It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

BEACH IN RHODES

Rhodes is an island in Greece, located in the eastern Aegean Sea. It is the largest of the Dodecanese islands in terms of both land area and population, with a population of 115,490 (2011 census), and also the island group's historical capital. The principal town of the island and seat of the municipality is Rhodes. The city of Rhodes had 50,636 inhabitants in 2011. It is located northeast of Crete, southeast of Athens and southwest of the Anatolian coast in Turkey. Historically, Rhodes was famous worldwide for the Colossus of Rhodes, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The medieval Old Town of the City of Rhodes has been declared a World Heritage Site. Today, it is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe.

This post is part of the Water World Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme.

TURKISH BELLY DANCE

Turkish oriental dance is referred to in Turkey as Oryantal Tansi, or simply 'Oryantal'. The Turkish style of bellydance is lively and playful, with a greater outward projection of energy than the more contained Egyptian style. Turkish dancers are known for their energetic, athletic (even gymnastic) style, and their adept use of finger cymbals, also known as zils. Connoisseurs of Turkish dance often say a dancer who cannot play the zills is not an accomplished dancer. Floorwork, which has been banned in Egypt since the mid-20th century, is still an important part of Turkish bellydance.Another distinguishing element of Turkish style is the use of the Karsilama rhythm in a 9/8 time signature, counted as 12-34-56-789. These photos were taken at a show we watched when we visited Turkey in 2007.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme.

JASMINE FLOWER

Jasminum, commonly known as jasmines, is a genus of shrubs and vines in the olive family (Oleaceae). It contains around 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions of the Old World. Jasmines are widely cultivated for the characteristic fragrance of their flowers. This is one of the five species species we have growing in our garden.


This post is part of the Nature Footsteps Floral Macros meme.

THE OUTBACK AND ULURU

Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock, is a large sandstone rock formation in the southern part of the Northern Territory, central Australia. It lies 335 km southwest of the nearest large town, Alice Springs, 450 km by road. Kata Tjuta and Uluru are the two major features of the Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park. Uluru is sacred to the Anangu, the Aboriginal people of the area. The area around the formation is home to a plethora of springs, waterholes, rock caves and ancient paintings. Uluru is listed as a World Heritage Site.

The bright orange and red colour of the sand and rock are due to the high content of iron oxide (rust!) minerals. The Uluru climb is still an option, although it a strenuous and demanding climb which can be very treacherous (35 people have died here). Nowadays, the traditional owners of the land make it know that they would prefer you not to climb the rock, whereas when we visited about 15 years ago, it was something that one had to do.

This post is part of the Mandarin Orange Monday meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme.

GREEK ISLAND

“Now from his breast into the eyes the ache

of longing mounted, and he wept at last,

his dear wife, clear and faithful, in his arms, 

longed for as the sunwarmed earth is longed for by a swimmer

spent in rough water where his ship went down

under Poseidon's blows, gale winds and tons of sea.

Few men can keep alive through a big serf

to crawl, clotted with brine, on kindly beaches

in joy, in joy, knowing the abyss behind:

and so she too rejoiced, her gaze upon her husband, 

her white arms round him pressed as though forever.” 

                                                           Homer: The Odyssey

This post is part of the Nature Footsteps Waters meme.

TURKISH GIRL

A beautiful child that asked to be photographed, deep in Cappadocia. The innocence of childhood coupled with a lovely face.

This post is part of the Weekend in Black & White meme,
and also part of the Weekly TopShot meme.

JERUSALEM ARTICHOKES

The Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus), also called sunroot, sunchoke, earth apple or topinambour, is a species of sunflower native to eastern North America, and found from eastern Canada and Maine west to North Dakota, and south to northern Florida and Texas. It is also cultivated widely across the temperate zone for its tuber, which is used as a root vegetable. Despite its name, the Jerusalem artichoke has no relation to Jerusalem, and it is not a type of artichoke. The origin of the name relates to Italian settlers in the USA, who called the plant "girasole", the Italian word for sunflower, because of its resemblance to the garden sunflower. Over time, the name "girasole" may have been changed to Jerusalem, while the tuber vaguely resembles the artichoke in taste.

Here it is, growing in our garden and it is proudly displaying its flowers, which are yellow and produced in capitate flowerheads, 5–10 centimetres in diameter, with 10–20 ray florets. The tubers are elongated and uneven, typically 7.5–10 centimetres long and 3–5 centimetres thick, and vaguely resembling ginger root, with a crisp texture when raw. The "artichoke" contains about 10% protein, no oil, and a surprising lack of starch. However, it is rich in the carbohydrate inulin (76%), which is a polymer of the monosaccharide fructose. Tubers that are stored for any length of time will digest its inulin into its component fructose.

Jerusalem artichokes have an underlying sweet taste because of the fructose, which is about one and a half times sweeter than sucrose. Jerusalem artichokes have also been promoted as a healthy choice for diabetics. The reason for this being the case is because fructose is better tolerated by people that are diabetic. It has also been reported as a folk remedy for diabetes. Temperature variances have been shown to affect the amount of inulin the Jerusalem artichoke can produce. When not in tropical regions, it has been shown to make less inulin than when it is in a warmer region.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme,

And also part of the Skywatch Friday meme.

OUR GARDEN

"If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need." - Marcus Tullius Cicero

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

BRISBANE RIVER & SOUTH BANK BEACH

The Brisbane River is the longest river in south east Queensland, Australia, and flows through the city of Brisbane, before emptying into Moreton Bay. John Oxley was the first European to explore the river who named it after the Governor of New South Wales, Thomas Brisbane in 1823. The river is a major waterway in Brisbane and numerous ferries add to the public transport capability of the Queensland capital city.

The man-made beach at Brisbane's South Bank features a crystal lagoon with enough water to fill five Olympic-size swimming pools, clean white beaches and subtropical trees and exotic plants.Chlorinated fresh water is recirculated every six hours at up to 125 litres per second. The water is pumped through two large sand filters and chemically treated before being returned back to the beach. The 4000 cubic metres of sand comes from Rous Channel in Moreton Bay and 70 tonnes is added each year to the South Bank Beach.

This post is part of the Water World Wednesday meme,

and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme.

VOL DE NUIT ROSE

Early Autumn in Melbourne is a wonderful time. We tend to get lovely warm days, fine weather and cool nights. The gardens are also looking good, with the rose bushes sending forth another round of blooms. Here is the "Vol de Nuit" rose growing in our garden.

The colour of "Vol de Nuit" is a clear deep mauve of a most attractive shade, and the form is particularly good with a high pointed centre and nicely reflexed petals. It is well suited for the show exhibitor and highly recommended for the home gardener. It is the leader of this colour group, and as a bonus it is very fragrant!

This post is part of the Nature Footsteps Floral Macros meme.

JUST JOEY ROSE

'Just Joey' rose is probably the best of the orange roses, or roses with an apricot blend. Take a look at the image of this hybrid tea rose and you'll understand why this is such a popular rose with the home gardeners everywhere,but escpecially in warmer climates. Of all the varieties of hybrid tea roses 'Just Joey' is definitely in the top five as far as beauty, fragrance, colour, compact form and disease resistance goes. It can't be beaten.

This post is part of the Mandarin Orange Monday meme,
and also part of the Nature Footsteps Inspiring Photography meme.

THE JOYS OF CREATION

Psalm 95
1: Oh come, let us sing to the Lord!
Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.
2: Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving;
Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.
3: For the Lord is the great God,
And the great King above all gods.
4: In His hand are the deep places of the earth;
The heights of the hills are His also.
5: The sea is His, for He made it;
And His hands formed the dry land.

This post is part of the Psalm Sunday meme.

OLD LANTERN

This post is part of the Weekend in Black & White meme,
and also part of the Weekly TopShot meme.

SUNSET REDS

This is taken on the street where I live. We have been getting some spectacular sunsets and sunrises lately and they are joy to watch (and photograph!).

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme.

WATERLILIES

Nymphaea is a genus of hardy and tender aquatic plants in the family Nymphaeaceae. There are about 50 species in the genus, which has a cosmopolitan distribution. The name Nymphaea comes from the Greek term "Νυμφαία", possibly related to "Νύμφη" meaning "nymph". The nymphs in Greek mythology were supernatural feminine beings associated with springs, so the application of the name to delicately flowered aquatic plants is understandable. Despite its common name "water lily" (water-lily, waterlily), Nymphaea is not related to the true lily, Lilium.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.

SUNRISE SERENITY

"A garden must combine the poetic and the mysterious with a feeling of serenity and joy." - Luis Barragán

This post is part of the Water World Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme.

BLOOD LILY

Haemanthus (blood lily) is a Southern African genus of flowering plants in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae, with some 22 known species, endemic to South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland. About 15 species occur in the winter rainfall region of Namaqualand and the Western Cape, the remainder being found in the summer rainfall region, with one species Haemanthus albiflos occurring in both regions.

Haemanthus coccineus, the Blood Flower or Paintbrush Lily, is a bulbous geophyte in the genus Haemanthus, native to Southern Africa.The generic name Haemanthus is derived from the Greek words haima for blood and anthos for flower; coccineus is the Latin word for red or scarlet. It now blooms quite happily in a pot in our garden. The flower is followed by the growth of two enormous, horizontal, flat leaves that look almost as remarkable as the blossom.

This post is part of the Nature Footsteps Floral Macros meme,

and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme.

SUMMER HEAT IN MELBOURNE

We have had about 10 days of unrelenting Summer heat in Melbourne. The cafés in Station Street, Fairfield, that are normally full of customers are struggling to attract clientele at their sidewalk tables. Much cooler inside. I've posterised and pseudocolourised the image...

This post is part of the Mandarin Orange Monday meme.

STORMY SKIES IN SYDNEY

Psalm 94: O Lord God, to whom vengeance belongeth;
O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew thyself.
2 Lift up thyself, thou judge of the earth: render a reward to the proud.
3 Lord, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph?
4 How long shall they utter and speak hard things?
and all the workers of iniquity boast themselves?

This post is part of the Psalm Sunday meme.