Skip to main content

Not so Smart

After spending the night on the apartment couch, while B and Alex had the queen bed, it is time to leave Canberra and begin our journey home. So as not to entirely waste a visit to the city, we first make a stop at the National Gallery of Australia. 

Alex wanted to revisit the War Memorial, but due to a spectacularly senseless reconstruction it is even more restricted than before.

Unfortunately, at the brutalist concrete gallery there are no tickets to the Jeffrey Smart exhibition until too late in the afternoon. At this point Alex let's us know that he is currently studying Smart's art at school, which just frustrates us further.

Nonetheless, we decide to have a wander at the rest of the free exhibitions at the gallery.

I love a good art gallery. There are few places more relaxing and yet stimulating as a gallery. The selection is very different to our last visit and I feel like I have changed too. The staid old classic styles no longer hold my interest as much as the contemporary and Indigenous art.

That trip to the Northern Territory really changed my perception of Indigenous art and culture, just as travel to Europe helped us understand and appreciate the Impressionists.

We spend a lot longer than intended in the gallery. Fortunately, we did also catch some glimpses of the Smart exhibition.

Driving back to Sydney, I detour through Majura Park to grab some lunch at the shopping centre. Really we just want something quick and convenient. Banh mi and sushi. 

I wish we could have stayed longer to admire the airport, with a Qantas 717 and a Virgin 737 both coming up close.

I want to reach home before the predicted rain and storms. Traffic on the Hume Highway is heavy and the driving requires a lot of concentration. Still, it really does feel like the shortest leg. It is certainly the most familiar. 

The house smells musty, but the fish all seem to be alive. We go out for pizza for dinner and enjoy using our own television.

As I write this a line of storms has struck, bring strong gusts of wind and heavy rain. A welcome home present after the glorious weather of our trip. 

Even more welcome: A firm bed and pillows. 
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Down the Oito Line

Riding the length of the Oito Line from Itoigawa to Shinjuku (well, Matsumoto, really, but you might as well go the whole way) has long been a dream of mine. It suddenly gained urgency when I read that the last length of it between Itoigawa to Minami-Otari would be closed once the Hokuriku Shinkansen to Kanazawa and Toyama opens by next year. Now, as mentioned last time, B and Alex are among those that would much rather catch the very fast Shinkansen, but in the end she decided to follow me, despite the very early morning. We rode the Hokuetsu Express from Toyama to Itoigawa, completing a little more of that West Coast for me. Though the coastal stretch was short there were some nice views at times. I should like to see more of Itoigawa one day, explore its geology. But now we had to quickly cross over the platform bridge to catch our train to Minami-Otari. To my great delight it was a KiHa 120 railcar, my favourite. I felt a degree of sadness standing up at the front...
Post a Comment
Read more

To Melbourne on the XPT sleeper

Excited by the prospect of reliving the experience of seeing my very first movie and hearing the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra perform it I bought tickets to The Empire Strikes Back in Concert in Melbourne back in February. Then I did nothing about actually getting there. Much as I love Melbourne, due to family commitments I didn't want to spend more than the Sunday away. Flights there and back made sense, but  my flight down to Melbourne in late October reiterated the fact that I usually don't enjoy descending into the city. And the concert was in December, a season of summer storms. I really didn't feel like driving the whole route alone and in a hurry, so that left one choice. The train. My very first trip up to Sydney from Melbourne was aboard the luxury Southern Aurora. Or it was supposed to be luxury. I wouldn't know because I spent the whole ride up very sick with the flu lying in the top bunk, unable to stay awake for my whole of night vigil. Now only...
Post a Comment
Read more