Monday, December 22, 2008

Come with us to Burra, South Australia













Lucky the Great Piddlesbury can cover such vast distances in such a short time, as Burra is about 1400 kms from Sydney! Click on the Google satellite image to view the route, or use Google Maps to explore further - use the 'Get Directions' function to follow the route we'll take. The country is looking very dry on Google maps, but after the lovely rains we've had, I'm sure it will be looking a whole lot better now.
You'll find streets called 'St Just', 'Sancreed', 'Ludgvan' and many other familiar Cornish names.
http://www.visitburra.com/History_of_Burra is an excellent place to start.
Top is Johnny Green, who sits atop a chimney stack, and 'tis said mothers used the fear of Johnny Green to get the children to behave!
Second is Burra's beautiful rotunda - nearly every town has or had one, as people loved to come out to hear their local band play on a Sunday afternoon.
Third is of course, the remains of an engine house which has been beautifully restored.
Fourth and fifth show what could almost be the same house at different periods of history - they're not the same, as far as I know, but they are typical of the houses built in the district - and later abandoned. South Australia has a very harsh climate with uncertain rains, and many a settler came in a good season, only to be driven away by drought.

No comments: