Saturday 27 December 2008

Boxing Day tradition

With the open ocean in full sight, the maxi yachts prepare to unfurl their spinakker to take full advantage of the off-shore winds that will propel them from Sydney to Hobart in what this year is expected to be close to a record time. The harbour is festooned with smaller vessels and sight-seers pack every available vantage point around the harbour. We arrived early and secured a vantage point on South Head.

8 comments:

Tanya Breese said...

Beautiful view!

Denton said...

I have often wondered about boxing day. Thanks for sharing one of the tradition.

Steffi said...

Beautiful photo!Nice view!

Tash said...

Do you get boxes of goodies on Boxing Day? Do you say "Happy Boxing Day"?
I enlarged the view for full impact of this wonderful scene. Looks like a fun summer day for all. Hope you had a lovely Christmas.
PS the plant on my post is a bougainvillea - they just keep on "blooming" all winter long.

Jilly said...

Nice shot, Julie. When I lived at Tinderbox, near to Hobart, we had the same tradition.

Julie said...

Australian's do not say "Happy x-day" very much at all. It is definitely foreign to our character: we say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year and Happy Birthday to individuals. But we simply do not extend it further. I find it strange that bloggers will say "Happy Sky Watch Friday". To me that devalues the currency.

What does Boxing Day mean in Australia? No matter what the derivation of BD overseas, here in Australia it is a major sporting day. It sees the start of the Sydney to Hobart Yacht race. It sees the start of a Cricket Test in Melbourne. And in the good ole days of my childhood, it always saw a major Davis Cup tournament in Melbourne. Alas, Australia is no longer a force in world tennis. However, there are two more quite plebian things that occur on Boxing Day: the major department stores have their major sales; and, cinemas have the first day of major oscar contenders for the following April. So ... Boxing Day is has little religious or cultural significance in Australia.

Ann said...

What a view. You really had a box seat. I didn't even bother to watch it on TV this year (forgot). Haven't even been out with the camera. Must try and rectify this during the week.

Lavender and Vanilla Friends of the Gardens said...

How exciting and a great vue.