Author Archives: browney

Reflections on Dire Strait’s Romeo and Juliet. Was it time and place or is it the greatest love song ever written?

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Romeo and Juliet / Solid Rock by Dire Straits (Single; Vertigo; 6059 364): Reviews, Ratings, Credits, Song list - Rate Your Music

As has become a habit in recent months, I woke early and lay in bed listening to music. I have found Spotify’s AI DJ to be a useful way to while away the early hours. It produces a mix of songs based on my listening. It can be a bit repetitive, but it’s easy.

 

As I was listening, up came Dire Straits, Romeo and Juliet, a Mark Knopfler song that apparently draws on his failed romance with Holly Vincent. I have always thought it was a captivating and emotional ballad, and while it may not be the critics’ choice, it is head and shoulders above my number one Dire Straits song. 

 

The song’s Shakespearean title sets the scene. To Romeo, it is a tragic tale of unfulfilled love, and although it has gone sour, Juliet is the true love of his life; it is ‘just that the time was wrong’.

 

He, ‘A love struck Romeo sings the street a serenade’,  ‘He’s underneath the window’  and is hit with Juliet’s cutting retort ‘Hey, la, my boyfriend’s back’ showing her love has moved on. She passes him off with ‘Oh, Romeo, yeah, you know I used to have a scene with him’ and he’s ’just one of her deals’. The latter is such a put-down. It is a callous rejection. 

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A footy fan -it’s better being there

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Early in The Showdown – 26 July 2025

Over the last 2 weeks I’ve had 2 quite contrasting football experiences. The first was last Saturday night, at what was one of the worst possible Adelaide nights. Very cold, windy and very wet, still The Showdown was on. Of course I went. Then last night when we were in Queensland to get away from the cold  where I watched the game on TV.

The Adelaide Crows have been ordinary at best for a number of years of years, but this year they are in very good form and are legitimate contenders for the AFL Premiership.

AFL Premiership table (Top 8)  – Adelaide are top – it’s mid round, so they could finish the weekend in second place.

For those not familiar with the AFL, The Showdown is the local derby between the 2 Adelaide teams, The Adelaide Crows and Port Adelaide Power. It’s an intense rivalry, that across the 58 meetings sees Adelaide on 30 wins and Port 28. Form has traditionally not necessarily dictated the winner, with the games always hard fought and often very close.

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Did I really go bird watching and butterfly spotting -Thala Nature Reserve Resort, Port Douglas

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At the conclusion of our first trip to Far North Queensland this year, we decided to treat ourselves to a few days at Thala Beach Nature Reserve Resort. The resort is about 15 minutes the Cairns side of Port Douglas. It is privately owned and doesn’t have the feel of a large commercial resort. That said, it has all the trimmings. 
It is not cheap, but it is delightful, and quite different to the style of accommodation we have stayed in before. 

There are stunning views from the Restaurant along the coast to the Daintree, while from the   Bar, there are coastal views looking back towards Cairns. The restaurant and bar are open-air, with wooden ceilings and no windows. It was breezy and gave the feel of a big tree house.
The accommodation is set in the woodland and is secluded, hut-style accommodation. All in all, it is quite a destination.

The question is, what do you do in such a place? You can eat and drink if that’s your fancy. It is certainly one of mine and one we didn’t pass up the opportunity to enjoy. However, as the name suggests, it’s also a place to take in the natural environment.


After we had settled into our room, we took a walk along one of the secluded beaches. There was not another person or, thankfully, crocodile in sight.

A duck!

Thala Beach offers several organised opportunities to enjoy the location. I decided to book myself on the morning birdwatching tour. I’m not sure that when I contemplated ‘What’s Next’, birdwatching was on the list of things I’d try, in fact, I’m sure it wasn’t! Continue reading →

Port Douglas – as relaxed as you want it to be

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This is our third visit to Port Douglas. With each visit we have stayed longer and arranged less activities. This time we visited in June with a trip planned in a couple of months for nearby Palm Cove.

On our first visit we had a day on the Barrier Reef, and visited the Daintree. Last year it was a day trip to Cooktown, an afternoon boat trip up the estuary to look for crocodiles, and a sunset cruise. This time it’s just been a sunset cruise, which was curtailed by the rough seas. In fact, on this trip it hasn’t been all blue sky days, rather,  it has been quite cloudy and windy, although still warm and we have had some rain. Definitely not what the ads say, but it’s been no less enjoyable than our previous stays.

I have generally been up early to watch the sunrise. We chose accommodation overlooking Four Mile Beach, which means seeing sunrise is just a walk to the balcony. 

Most mornings have started with a walk along Four Mile Beach or the coastal path, and sometimes both. The beach always offers something different. Because the weather has been less than perfect, the beach hasn’t been crowded, a few swimmers and a small number lying the beach. There is always quite a few people strolling along Four Mile Beach, which, as the name implies is a long stretch of sand. We walked the full length on one of the sunny days. Continue reading →

Port Douglas, Lost Luggage and Lesson Learned

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Dawn, 4 Mile Beach, Port Douglas

As is  becoming something of a tradition, we’ve returned to Port Douglas for a couple of weeks of warmth and relaxation, and thankfully, so has our luggage. Eventually.

Getting to Port Douglas from Adelaide involved approximately 4.5 hours of flying, across 2 flights. A direct flight other than by a budget carrier wasn’t available.

From Cairns airport it’s an hour’s drive north, along the picturesque coast to Port Douglas. It’s nearly 3,000 kilometres by road, a solid 32-hour drive—long enough to remind you just how vast  Australia really is. To put it in perspective: a flight of the same duration from London would land you in Athens, Corfu, Venice or Lisbon. For us, it’s simply a journey to another state that shares a border with, our home state, South Australia—albeit at the far end of it.

That’s part of the charm of Australia. It’s huge, and every corner is different. Adelaide was a chilly 7C when we arrived at the airport for our early morning flight; Port Douglas greeted us a half a day later with a humid 28C. No wonder Far North Queensland is such a draw card during the winter months. Continue reading →