Grey Masts

February 25, 2023 | Posted by Peter Jakobsen | AUSTRALIANIA, TRAVEL |

Beach House, 36-38 Smillie Street, Robe, South Australia (February 2023) South to Robe, a 337 kilometre drive from Adelaide, for a weekend conference, TVC stayed at Grey Masts, a 3 bedroom beach house in the heart of town. Described as a “Charming Drinking Village with a Fishing Problem,” Robe was founded in the 1840s and now survives less as a port than a tourist attraction. Grey Masts is 3 minutes walk from Robe’s beautiful beach, where the Robe Motel sits; 1 minute from the Caledonian Inn, an 1850s English-style pub, which is over the road (you get to hear the…

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The Cube

October 27, 2022 | Posted by Peter Jakobsen | ART, AUSTRALIANIA, TRAVEL |

d’Arenberg winery, October 2022 d’Arenberg Cube is a five-storey, double-tempered glass building situated within the Mourvèdre vines of d’Arenberg winery in the little town of McLaren Vale, itself a great stop and gateway to South Australia’s famous Fleurieu Peninsula. The design concept for the Cube came from d’Arenberg’s Chief Winemaker, Chester Osborn, by way of inspiration from Toyo Ito’s Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London and Ernõ Rubik’s famous puzzle. Built in 2014/17 at a reputed cost of $15 million to $16 million Australian dollars, it rises, or ‘floats’ above gently rolling hills and vines, in no way creating an eyesore. You…

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NGV Musings

July 26, 2022 | Posted by Peter Jakobsen | ART, TRAVEL |

(Melbourne, May 2022) We Love the NGV very much (but not everything In it). NGV Waterwall In May, there was a wonderful display of Asian Art (NGV began collecting items in 1862 – no doubt the fruit of the Victorian Gold Rush – and now has over 2000). But first we had to re-visit (being white supremacists) the European galleries: We liked Chen Yongcai’s Harvest Season prints on paper (c. 1972): …and these superb Javanese puppets (1960s): The whole collection on display in May included ceramics, bronze vessels, mirrored and jade objets d’art, funerary designs, as well as some contemporary…

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Il Bacaro

June 13, 2022 | Posted by Peter Jakobsen | FOOD, Restaurants, THUMBNAIL REVIEWS, TRAVEL |

(168-170 Little Collins Street, Melbourne, 20 May 2022) A Homage to Bacchus This lively, lovely little joint Has been going strong since ’95, It’s tiny, dark and crowded space Is always filled, and comes alive. So you should always be prepared To book, and get there right on time; You may cool heels at the well-stocked bar, But the drinks there are sublime. And after a grand snort or two, You’re deftly guided to your seat: An expert waiter, with no airs, Will help you work out what to eat. *************************************** THIS TIME AROUND WE HAD: Ostriche al naturale (6…

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Queensland Art Gallery: The Good

December 4, 2021 | Posted by Peter Jakobsen | ART, TRAVEL |

November 2021 After a few nasty snickers concerning the quaint homage to the Louvre (below), we entered the Gallery after finally mastering the Queensland QR codes.  It’s full of good stuff. We have traversed the pitiful pieces: but  thankfully there was plenty of fine art to be found here.  Apart from the sublime Dürer woodcuts, and Artur Loureiro’s Study for “The spirit of the new moon” (1888)(see main image) inspired by the Luciads by Camoens, there were: A Madonna and child encircled by flowers and fruit (c. 1615), attributed to Andries Danielsz: “Wisdom supporting Liberty” by Jules Dalou (1889): No…

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