Love Conquers War
Nov. 22nd, 2016 08:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
todayiamadaisyAustralia's Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, met Barack Obama to say good-bye the other day. Don't bother reading the article, though. This is the important bit:
But Mr Turnbull says when it comes to trade, he and President Obama believe in the importance of open markets.
"Increasing the opportunities for businesses to grow and develop, whether it's in Warrnambool or Wyoming, it benefits across the world."
That's the City by the Sea! I imagine Obama being slightly baffled by where it is. (Also, Malcolm, why pick a city and a state? Why not a city and a city? Say, Warrnambool to Wichita?)
Anyway, today I have not been in City by the Sea. I've been a few hours north in the... City on the Plains? I don't know what to call it. Let's call it Ballarat, for that is its name. Ballarat was a goldrush town, and is older, richer, and about three times the size of the City by the Sea. It is the third most populous inland city in Australia. (Thanks, Wikipedia!) It also hosted the rowing events for the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. (Thanks, Mum!) It was also the site of one of my favourite events in Australian history: when Lola Montez, dancer and mistress of Ludwig I of Bavaria, visited the goldfields in 1855 to entertain the miners with her infamous spider dance (apparently it involved pretending to be a demure young lady who had a spider run up her tights, thus necessitating the removal of layer after layer of clothing), she received a bad review from one Ballarat newspaper, which outraged her so much she tracked the paper's editor down to his favourite pub and horsewhipped him down the main street. As one would.
The Archibald Prize is Australia's annual portrait prize, and this year all the finalists are being exhibited at the Ballarat Art Gallery. I asked my mother if she wanted to see it, and she liked the idea so much she invited her friends Sue and Val. So that's where I've been today. First we went to the exhibition (we all liked the People's Choice winner, Deng, best - it was amazing in person: it's quite a big canvas and it dominated the room). Then we went to Victoria's largest quilting store, which just happens to be in Ballarat. While the three of them were busy picking fabrics for a quilt Val wants to make, I took the opportunity to buy a pack of pre-cut fabric that my mother was admiring. That's one Christmas present sorted.
But Mr Turnbull says when it comes to trade, he and President Obama believe in the importance of open markets.
"Increasing the opportunities for businesses to grow and develop, whether it's in Warrnambool or Wyoming, it benefits across the world."
That's the City by the Sea! I imagine Obama being slightly baffled by where it is. (Also, Malcolm, why pick a city and a state? Why not a city and a city? Say, Warrnambool to Wichita?)
Anyway, today I have not been in City by the Sea. I've been a few hours north in the... City on the Plains? I don't know what to call it. Let's call it Ballarat, for that is its name. Ballarat was a goldrush town, and is older, richer, and about three times the size of the City by the Sea. It is the third most populous inland city in Australia. (Thanks, Wikipedia!) It also hosted the rowing events for the 1956 Melbourne Olympics. (Thanks, Mum!) It was also the site of one of my favourite events in Australian history: when Lola Montez, dancer and mistress of Ludwig I of Bavaria, visited the goldfields in 1855 to entertain the miners with her infamous spider dance (apparently it involved pretending to be a demure young lady who had a spider run up her tights, thus necessitating the removal of layer after layer of clothing), she received a bad review from one Ballarat newspaper, which outraged her so much she tracked the paper's editor down to his favourite pub and horsewhipped him down the main street. As one would.
The Archibald Prize is Australia's annual portrait prize, and this year all the finalists are being exhibited at the Ballarat Art Gallery. I asked my mother if she wanted to see it, and she liked the idea so much she invited her friends Sue and Val. So that's where I've been today. First we went to the exhibition (we all liked the People's Choice winner, Deng, best - it was amazing in person: it's quite a big canvas and it dominated the room). Then we went to Victoria's largest quilting store, which just happens to be in Ballarat. While the three of them were busy picking fabrics for a quilt Val wants to make, I took the opportunity to buy a pack of pre-cut fabric that my mother was admiring. That's one Christmas present sorted.