Launceston

 Launceston 

And yet more buildings that were worthy of  photo...an art nouveau style from the 1930's...

...the Brisbane Hotel...

...another little gem...

...a windmill down by the old docks...

...The River Tamar...

...the old bridge over the South Esk river as it flow out of the cataract gorge...

...and part of the old dock complex with a rope walkway crossing the face of the cliff and a bungy jumping platform.

A old wooden house near the docks...

...with another...

...and a row of terraced houses.

A road train n town...

...an old mill...

Dr William Russ Pugh who performed the first operation in Australia using ether as an anaesthetic

A upper storey verabdah.

The Post Office.

The clock tower at one end of the post office.

The town hall.

The local brewery...

...another detail of the brewery...

...and the commercial hotel opposite.

Launceston, Tasmania

 Launceston, Tasmania 

I was back down under after a flight from Singapore via Melbourne to Launceston in Tasmania. It was a great place to just walk around the city centre and take in the architecture.

There are so many well preserved buildings from the turn of the century from the late Victorian era to the early Edwardian era.

Many classic buildings...

...built to impress...

...with some fancy artwork...

...a local church...

...a grand facade if you avoid the first level shop fronts and names above the front...

..plus some classics...

...a later addition to cater for the explosion in car ownership.

A house with verandahs on two levels on two sides to catch whatever breeze there was to cool off in summer.

Not exactly a road train but it was a tanker pulling a tanker trailer.

Another historical building with a high entrance on the far right hand side ti allow horses pulling coaches to reach the stables at the rear of the building. 

And there were more buildings to see...

...and nearby, the Blue Building.

Some buildings have been in the same occupation since being built, such this chemist.

There were plenty of other buildings around the centre worthy of note...

...many on corners...

...and some beautiful buildings but built asymmetrically and not quiet to the earlier architectural Georgian sense of symmetry. 

Another grand building...

... and the Cornwall Hotel, a magnificent Art Nouveau structure way ahead of its time as th date on the building is 1824. Maevellous building but sadly, not where I was staying.

A surprise building, the same era as the others but with statues gracing several alcoves along the front. 

A former meeting house with a grand facade, now occuppied by an agricultural business.

A 1930's built cinema, now converted into two shops.

Singapore views

 Singapore views

Raffles was to expensive for me at USD2,000 a night, so I went for a cheap hotel, the Swissotel opposite which was a fifth o the price.

Iconic views from my balcony on the 20th floor.

More scenery...just as I iamagined as land is scarce and builders create space by building upwards...but I was surprised that there are two storey private dwellings on the island but the prices are eye watering.

And more well known buildings and teh Helix Bridge...

...teh Arts and Science Museum...

Space is at a premium but there is always space for tradition...whether it be cricket or bowls.

And a few more pictures of Raffles...

...and the main facade with the name.

Raffles, Singapore

Raffles, Singapore 

My hotel was in the heart of Chinatown which was where we were staying...but we were going to Raffles for a Singapore Sling in the Long Bar...

The entrance to Raffles...

...part of their garden...

...a walkway overlooking the gardens...

...another view...

...one of the wings of the hotel.

Inside the Long Bar in Raffles. Note the ceiling fans, originally operated by a punka wallah. The floor looked clean but it was covered in peanut husks. It is a tradition that peanuts in their shells are waiting for customers at every table and that the shells are thrown on the floor. Singapore is a benevolent dictatorship republic. Rules can be harsh. Every where else in IndoChina, the roads are clogged with masses of scooters. They are banned in Singapore. Drive a car or take the very cheap public transport, buses, rail, metro or taxis. 

Fines for littering are up to SGP5,000 (circa USD3,500). Second offences are double the maximum and three months in jail. Throwing peanut husks on the floor is an offence, but due to tradition, the Long Bar is exempt. I am sure some people just come to legally flout the law just to get their money's worth.

The Magnificent Seven, the seven who had started in Istanbul more than five months previously and had survived the pouring rain, camping in the middle of nowhere with no facilities, freezing temperatures, altitude and cold in mountains especially at Everest Base Camp, hot and humid conditions, being eaten alive by insects and not just mosquitoes and all sorts of nondescript stomach upsets.

We had earnt our Singapore Slings in Raffles, posing in front of the billiard table...

...and posing in front of the bar with our Slings, probably the most expensive single drink I have ever had at USD30 each...made more expensive by 10% service charge and 9% tax.