Sunday, March 28, 2010

A Magical Night...

A few weeks ago I got an email from Masha over at Our Religion inviting me to a special evening event at the Melbourne Zoo, for Earth Hour 2010. And boy was it special...
I invited my lovely auntie Jane to be my plus-one, and we were worried we'd miss out on the tour that was promised as part of the evening, considering we were running late (punctuality doesn't run in my family, I guess you could say). But thankfully, we arrived to our surprise with plenty of time to spare. As we checked in at the Bloggers Table, we were given a 'survival pack', consisting of some chocolate, sultanas, water, insect repellent, a reusable coffee cup (Keep Cup, very nifty invention) and some information on Zoos Australia. How sweet!

Our 'survival pack'

We set off on the tour, and I was starting to get a little bit scared. I love animals, but they really scare me. Especially the ones that are bigger and/or stronger than me. Thank god we didn't have time to visit the gorillas. I may have passed out. We did, however, have time to visit the giraffes, the zebras and emus, the reptiles and the lions (which we saw being fed - not as terrifying as it sounds). Considering it was evening, most of the park was shut from viewing, but it was fun while it lasted. The lions were behind a fence, so all of the photos I took are painfully dodgy, but I thought I'd upload at least one.

Gorgeous giraffe.

So tall...

The zebras matched our stripey tops.

Demon lion.
See what I mean? Painfully dodgy...


After the short-and-sweet tour, it was time for some dinner (the entire evening was absolutely free, if you can believe it). I was very pleased to see some veggie burgers on offer, as well as green salad and potato salad. There were even tables with place-settings for all of us bloggers to sit at! It was all very lovely. A nice, communal feeling. During dinner, the music started. The main attraction of the evening was the Earth Hour Unplugged concert, and Jane and I were very excited to see the Blackchords play as we'd been listening to their music before arriving at the zoo. Little did we know, as the tour was wrapping up and we were innocently eating dinner, the Blackchords were doing their set! We had no idea, and then it was too late. But all was not lost, as once we finished our dinner and set up our rug and bags on the lawn in front of the music pavilion, the second band Wagons began and they were very enjoyable.

Wagons.

Me.
It was a tiring day - I guess it shows...

Jane and I.

The lead singer was probably using a little too much language considering it was a family event, but everybody found it funny anyway. Being so short on cash recently, it's been a while since I've been to any sort of live music gig and I've forgotten how special the experience is - I've resolved to see more live music, as a result. Around 8.20pm it was very dark, and Tim Rogers began his set. As Earth Hour approached (8.30pm-9.30pm), the lights in the park and the stage were turned off and all that was left were the instruments, creating a really cool sensation. I hadn't been feeling well for a little while now, so we decided it might be best to leave after 15 minutes or so, to avoid the traffic (in case I would get to point where I needed to hit the bathroom). So unfortunately, we didn't get to see all of Tim Rogers, which was a shame because I was really enjoying his performance when we left.

The foreboding sky.

The crowd.

Our view of the stage.

Tim Rogers.

The stage.
Cool camera effects.


The stage.


But alas, an incredibly magical night all the same...


How was everyone's weekend?


Romany
p.s. I will do an award post in the coming days - don't worry, lovelies, I haven't forgotten.

[photos courtesy of my iPhone, my digital camera]

23 comments:

Josie said...

Lovely, lovely photos -- giraffes are my favorite!
xxoo Josie
http://winksmilestyle.blogspot.com

chantelle said...

ahh sounds like HEAPS of fun, lucky you :) you're so pretty! great images!
x

SabinePsynopsis said...

Oh, this sounds lovely. What a great invitation! We went to see the 'Magical castle' exhibition in Kensington palace (London, UK) and tried to find some princesses... Great fun.

Unknown said...

this sounds amazing. I have always wanted to go on one of those nighttime zoo tours...i love the zoo as it is (sadly all my friends think i'm too old to go), but i think there would be something magical about it at night.

And there was a bloggers table?!
xx

Cathie said...

your pics are great!!
was a very special evening and I was very happy to find something for the vegos in there too.

hope you were feeling better the next day.

thanks for visitng ♥

Fashion Tidbits said...

coooolllll!!!! i would have loved to have done that when i went to the melb zoo!

Audrey Allure said...

Sounded like an amazing time :)

Denisa L said...

cutie!!!
glad that you had an wonderful time:)

MyStrawberryCocktail said...

nice post! haha i esp love the animals.. demon lion made me smile:D
xoxo

Vintage Obsession said...

your so pretty :) you have some of the best pictures and best comments on my blog :)

Siru said...

sounds like you had amazing time!

juliet xxx

Cafe Fashionista said...

Oh, this looks like such an amazing adventure. I adore animals myself, and I've always had a soft spot for giraffes. They're just gorgeous! :)

Fifi Flowers said...

WOUld love to go to the zoo!
FUN photos at the end of your post!

emily said...

it sounds like you had a fantastic time! the demon lion made me laugh...and those 2 pictures at the end are very cool!

-emilyviveur

Jaime @ laviejaime said...

Great photos- looks indeed like a magical night! :)

LyddieGal said...

What an awesome event to get to attend! The giraffes are so beautiful and watching the lions eat sounds really crazy!

Yay for live music - I haven't been to a concert since last april - I so need to go to one!

Chic on the Cheap

Anonymous said...

loving this post
fun mix of photos and inspiration
love it!
thanks for sharing darling
and thanks for the sweet comments, means so much!

-cma
COSMICaroline.blogspot.com

Unknown said...

hi romany how are u

hey lovely post

wanna visit there once

Death Wears Diamond Jewellery said...

ohmigod, sounds AMAZING! i would have loved the tour. lions eating, awww yay how cute! ive never been to melbourne zoo. cannot wait until my baby brother is old enough so i can take him haha

ps. you are very cute!

Unknown said...

What a GREAT night out, I totally dig these kind of things. Nice photos, you look cute:)

Unknown said...

What a cool event. Loved your pics.

Glam Girl said...

Great pictures!

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