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Bourke Gateway to the Australian Outback

Dance of the Echidna's

Bourke

Located in the Orana Region of western New South Wales, Bourke is the edge of the Outback. To many Australian, the saying Back O’ Bourke means in the middle of nowhere.

Visitor Centre

Our first stop was the Back O’ Bourke Tourist Information Centre, so that we could find out if there was anything new in the area to see. The friendly staff told us about a local artist’s gallery, a display at the airport and a riverboat cruise. They also gave us a map of the local cemetery, which had graves of interest marked, which was very helpful.

Outside the main building, an excellent sculpture artwork, The Dance of the Echidnas combines aboriginal culture and local flora, to form a great display.

Bourke Airport

As suggested by the tourist visitor centre, we dropped into the local airport, where the terminal is named after famous Australian aviator Nancy Bird-Walton. Nancy Bird-Walton, was a pioneering Australian aviator, known as “The Angel of the Outback”, and the founder and patron of the Australian Women Pilots’ Association. In the 1930s, she became a fully qualified pilot at the age of 19 becoming the youngest Australian woman to gain a pilot’s licence.

In addition to information and photos on Nancy Bird Walton, the airport terminal shows the history of aviation at Bourke and how important it was to Australia’s development of aviation. Many air races and original air routes passed through Bourke, before flying became what it is today.

MV Janda Riverboat

Heavy rain in the previous month meant that the Darling River was rising. We were lucky to get on the last river cruise because of the river’s height. The amount of silt washed down stream due to flooding meant that the river was brown.

The peaceful and relaxing 90-minute trip took us passed river red gums and farm land before returning.

Bourke Wharf

The wharf is a reconstruction of the original and is primarily a tourist attraction. However, it still shows how it operated, even as the river rose and fell seasonally, with multiple levels available to access the ships.

Crossley Engine

Sitting undercover near the wharf, the Crossley engine was donated by Bob Crawford and family from Narromine in 2001. Operated on weekdays for an hour by volunteers, and fully restored to working condition it is worth seeing.

Originally used from 1923 to 1938 in the Sydney Power House to generate electricity for Sydney it moved to the Allowrie Butter Factory in Coffs Harbour until 1949. It then went to a property in Narromine in 1949 to pump water for irrigation until 1964.

Historic Buildings

The centre of town has many lovely old buildings, which makes a walk through the main streets interesting, as you are constantly looking to see what is around.

Bourke Cemetery

Many people were visiting the cemetery when we arrived, mostly to see the grave of Fred Hollows. Fred was an ophthalmologist became known for his work in restoring eyesight for thousands of people in Australia and many other countries.

Our map from the Tourist Information Centre showed several other interesting graves. We found the most interesting to be the Afghan graves and associated mosque. Camels carried freight in the early days of colonial Australia, until replaced by trucks in the 1930s.

What did We Think of Bourke?

We found Bourke to be a very relaxed town, easy to find your way around, with plenty to see and do.

To see what else there is to do in New South Wales, please see some of our other stories.

Our photos are available for purchase on

Monet and Friends Impressionists in Sydney

Monet and Friends

Monet and Friends

Monet and Friends is an art show unlike any other we have visited. Instead of paintings hung on gallery walls, huge projection screens display the art works. With over 20 screens, 3,000 pictures and surround sound it was a truly immersive experience.

The Royal Hall of Industries in Moore Park, Sydney, is a great venue and very easy to get to. We used public transport, catching the light rail from Central Station to Moore Park. Those who chose to drive parked in the car park near Fox Studios.

We arrived early, so bought a coffee in the entertainment quarter and relaxed before we went in.

The Entrance

The exhibition started before entering, as the entryway was a series of picture frames, along with Monet’s paintings. Inside, another huge frame was used as a stage for a ballerina performing in front of another painting.

Entrance
Entrance to the Exhibition
Monet and Friends
Ballerina on Monet’s Bridge

Monet and Friends Exhibition

Running on a 45 minute loop, the exhibition could be entered at any time, which was great so that you didn’t have to wait for it to finish before you entered. The auditorium was large and you were able to walk around to experience it from different perspectives.

The exhibition started with an introduction to impressionism and the important artists. We found this very interesting, because we only had a basic understanding of it. It went through the changes in painting style and the types of paints used. This was presented as a mixture of paintings, real life photos and audio explanations which made it very interesting.

Claude Monet
Claude Monet
Monet and Friends
The Huge Projection Screens
Monet and Friends
Pissarro
Monet and Friends
Cezanne

The Paintings

The wonderful paintings composed the largest part of the display. Being able to see them at such a huge scale was great. The immersive effect was very enjoyable, because the art completely surrounded you.

Monet and Friends
Monet and Friends
Monet and Friends
Monet and Friends
Monet and Friends
Monet and Friends
Monet and Friends
Monet and Friends

What Did We Think?

We spent over an hour immersed in art while leaning about impressionism. This was a great way to see Monet and the other impressionists, while being educated and entertained.

We Can Be Heroes Newcastle Art Gallery

We Can Be Heroes at Newcastle Art Gallery

We Can Be Heroes Newcastle Art Gallery

We Can Be Heroes is a photographic exhibition by Australia’s best music photographers, making it a must see for music fans. On display at the Newcastle Art Gallery until 14 February 2021.

From local talent to international superstars, there will someone you recognise. Artists such as David Bowie, The Preachers and Midnight Oil were on display. We had a great time walking around the displays, because it not only shows artists on stage, but also shows behind the scenes shots.

Silverchair’s Neon Ballroom is there, along with chairs to sit on in front of it. A wall covered in promotional posters for shows was interesting to look at, because you could see adds for shows from the past.

This display takes up the top floor, as this is where the special exhibitions go. The lower floor was not accessible, because the gallery was rotating its display, bringing some its stored items out, which will be nice to see when completed.