Mar Chor Nui Nui

One of the many temples on the Island - this is a Chinese Taost temple. When I got out of the car I could smell it...

the sea breeze
carries a taste of incense...
temple offering

Limestone rubble

This is what is left after phosphate has been mined from the ground. This is the proposed rocket launch site, however it all fell in a hole. The project can still go ahead, they just need an interested party to back it.

Bush Bashing

Simon and I went for a drive down to South Point a couple weeks back. This isn't really what it looks like - but I couldn't resist the shot. I was standing on top of some ruins while Simon was bringing the car around.

Brown Booby

Booby's are very docile birds. This one sat calmly watching me (first left eye, then right, then left...) while I got closer and closer to get a good photo.

Rain, rain, rain

No, it's not the Matrix LOL! Those strings of droplets frozen in motion by my flash are streams of water running off our corrigated roof. They don't believe in using gutters here unless they absolutely have to. We have one that runs down the centre of our roof and our neighbours - it was gushing.

Red Tailed Tropic Bird

I stopped at the Grocery store after a morning of photography. When I got out of the car I spotted this bird flying around the cove. I grabbed my camera and fired off 2 shots before it disappeared. Sometimes you get lucky :-)

I originally had this bird identified as a Silver Bosan - but have since realized it's not. Interestingly, it was wrong in an old Bird Pamphlet I have. I picked up a newer pamphlet recently and the mistake has been corrected.

Yellow Eyed Ghost Crab

Not everything here is massive. I found this cute little guy down near the Grotto. He only grows up to 2cm and is very shy. I had to wait patiently for him to come out of his hiding spot before I could get a good photo.

Massive Fly

Check out this massive fly(?). It looks a bit dark on the library screen, so I hope you can see it ok.

Calligraphy???

You remember that Giant African Snail - lower down the posts. Well those giant snails, leave giant poo on the side of the house. I thought it looked like Chinese writing LOL.

Free Range Food

When I was up at the telecoms tower photographing Frigates, I discovered a free-range pumpkin - or very fat zucchini? Not sure exactly what breed, but I'm sure it will be tasty when I turn it into soup :-)

Grasshopper

This grasshopper doesn't appear to be as common as the yellow locust. I only spotted it because it moved. It's yellow spots make it very pretty.

Juvenile Frigate

The juvenile Frigate can be identified by the orange-brown colour of its head.

Female Frigate

Male Frigate Drinking

After the rain, there are pools of water lying on the ground. Frigates love to swoop down and scoop up a beak full of water. They are very gracefull. When I was taking these photos, there were two pools of water. If I got too close to them with my camera, they just swapped pools.

Male Lesser Frigate

The Lesser Frigate has no white markings. The males have a throat sack used during mating.

Male Christmas Island Frigate

I took a lot of photos of Frigates when I went up to the Telecoms tower. This particular Frigate is unique to Christmas Island - identifiable by the white patch on his belly.

PURPLE!!!

I spotted my first PURPLE coconut crab!! How cool? I spotted him/her at a temple in our street. He/she was enjoying an offering of coconut.

Mosquito Bush

A local informed me that this was a mosquito bush - one of many around our house. My opinion - anything green in the tropics is a mosquito bush!!! I put on the aeroguard when I go out into the jungle, but then it runs off in rivers of perspiration. So the price of exploring and getting great photos - is lots of mossie bights.

Golf Course

This would have to be the most stunning view of a golf course in the world!! I followed an overgrown path after visiting a Chinese Cemetary and came out of the jungle here.

Birthday Boy

I made some enquiries and found a lady on the Island who makes Birthday cakes. I managed to keep it a secret from Simon. Our friend Nell picked it up for me and brought it to our House Warming party.

House Pets

This gecko - along with many others, make very cute free-range house pets. They range in size from about 1 cm up to about 10 cm. They do leave the odd deposit though...

glowing lightbulb...
a gecko on the ceiling
adds to my report

Packed Packing

All these boxes were filled with packing paper and bubble wrap! I didn't get to have my bubble wrap trampoline though - because the removalist re-uses as much as possible. Even his jaw dropped when he saw how much packing material our removalist used!

Flattened!

Flattened boxes ready to be picked up by the removalist for re-use. When this lot were picked up, another load of full boxes were dropped off. Groan...

Picnic Dinner

On Saturday 31st January, the majority of our belongings arrived - YEAH!! It was a huge relief because of all the stories we heard about boats that didn't arrive last year or couldn't unload because of high swell.

We bought fish and chips from a local shop in Poon Saan and had a picnic on our living room floor.

Long Spined Black Urchin

There are lots of these Urchins close to the Jetty at Flying Fish Cove. The most recent underwater photos were all shot "blind". The screen on my underwater camera has died - much to my disgust. Only photos of subjects that weren't moving worked out. I haven't actually been snorkelling for the last 2 weeks. It has just taken me this long to get enough internet time to post these photos.

Blue Lipped Clam

Along with blue lips, I also saw pink lips, and brown lips on clams. I was surprised at the variety of colours.

Brain Coral

I thought this coral was amazing, and well named. I saw it at Flying Fish Cove. Sadly, I saw another coral like this at Lilly Beach, but it had been carved into with a name.

Green Leafy Coral

White Shelf Fungus

Simon spotted this fungus when we went on a self guided information walk behind the "Pink House". Unfortunately, we didn't have the information pamphlet with us at the time, and we only spotted two of the numbered markers. Another item on Simon's list of "things that need doing".

Yellow Locust

Michael helped me spot a couple of these yellow locusts in the mangroves when we walked along a cliff top board walk between Lilly Beach and Ethel Beach.

Common Noddy

These birds nest along cliff faces. We saw these at Lilly Beach - a popular swimming spot because access is very easy and it is a small, well protected cove.

Frigate

We arrived at the bird sanctuary with our first rescued Booby just in time to see Max feed the birds. He had some "visitors" as well. Birds that have recovered and returned to the wild, sometimes come back for a free feed because they know the routine. They were difficult to photograph nicely though because they were sitting on chairs and an old table.

Saving the Red Footed Booby

There is a bird sanctuary on the Island, so when we found a juvenile red footed Booby bird that had fallen out of its nest, we rescued it and took it to Max.

Normally these birds are quite active and will peck you so you have to keep their head covered. This one was weak and docile though.

Blow Hole # 2

The waves had to get realy big for this blow hole to put on a show. When I stood close enough to look down - it was a very long drop to the ocean below!

Blow Hole

Simon and Michael got drenched when they stood next to this blow hole. It was very funny!

Grotto

You can hear this Grotto long before you see it - local legend says that a dragon sleeps here. The sound of air being sucked in and drawn out again by wave action truly makes it sound like a dragon!!

There is a rope on the left, so it is easy to climb down and go for a swim. Despite the fearsome noise, it is very safe and calm.

Michael lost his thong though. He dropped it and it dissapeared underneath the ledge with no sign of reappearing.

Moray Eel

Michael was swimming tight circles around me. When I told him that he was swimming over the top of a Moray Eel, he got out of my way very quickly :-)

Convict Surgeonfish

Velvet Surgeonfish

Threadfin Butterfly Fish

Six Bar Wrasse

Powder Blue Surgeonfish

Blue lined Surgeonfish

Female Blackvein Parrotfish

Most varieties of fish look the same whether they are male or female. This variety is quite different though. I haven't got a photo of the male for comparison though.

Black Triggerfish

I have a book on Christmas Island fish now, so I can identify them. Although that is easier said than done sometimes, because of variations in colouring and slight differences between some varieties.

Baby Red Crab

I missed seeing the greater part of the baby crabs coming up from the ocean. But quite a few were still making there way into the jungle. They are tiny - about 1/2 cm.

Snake Eel

In the shallow rock pools at Dolly Beach you can see little Snake Eels. There were also Skipper Fish, but I didn't have my camera on me when I saw them.

Coconut Fight

With great persistance, Simon managed to open a coconut by bashing it against rocks and tearing half the husk off. After we had eaten our fill of fresh coconut (so much nicer than supermarket bought) I gave the last of it to a Coconut Crab that wandered past.

Unfortunately for that crab, another crab came along. They fought for about 5 minutes. The new crab won, and the first crab sulked away with a piece it managed to cut away before losing the rest.

Dolly Beach

The end of the board walk - Yeah!!! There is a sheltered spot to swim in between the rocks.

Golden Orb Weaver

Simon walked through this spider's web. It broke, just before the spider landed on him (about 2 inches long).