Leon Mika Profile Photo

Leon Mika

Software Developer and occasional writer of music. Based in Melbourne, Australia.

Photos

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    Day 3: precious

    A photo of the Hope Diamond, taken while touring the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, in Washington, DC. #mbsept

    The Hope Diamond, a small diamond in a pendent under a glass cabinet
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    Day 2: buildup

    New shed being built nearby to house the spoil from a new road tunnel. It’s quite large. I guess they’re expecting quite a large build-up of dirt. #mbsept

    Frame of a large concrete shed, with exposed metal rafters, and a concrete back wall
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    Day 1: abstract

    Photo of an abstract(ish) sculpture of Bunjil, an eagle regarded as the spirit creator of the Kulin nations. #mbsept

    A white, abstract sculpture of an eagle surrounded by buildings
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    Missed the train this morning, but grabbed a photo of it travelling back to Newport this evening. 🚂

    Steam train travelling through station in the evening.
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    Currawong close-up (okay, not really, but any closer and it’ll fly away).

    Currawong in profile on a branch
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    While passing this sign on the way to work, I always wonder if they ever considered the name Catstruction.

    A business sign painted on the side of a glass building that reads: Construction Software Pty Ltd
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    Sat down on a park bench to reply to someone and this magpie came running up to me. Stayed for a minute then moved on after he realised I had no food for him.

    An Australian white-backed magpie standing in profile.
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    Oof, took me an extra hour to get into work due to train issues. At least I got a walk out of it. I feel for these poor souls, stuck on the train until the problem gets fixed.

    People on a stationary train on a bridge.
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    The local Woolworths has rolled out what I believe to be E Ink price tags. I was hoping to start seeing E Ink used for things like this. The technology is perfect for this use case.

    An E Ink display for tomato juice. A colour E Ink display, with a yellow background, for tonic water.
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    Any day I get to spend time with Ivy and Archie is a good day.

    Giving a head scratch to Ivy, a white cockatiel, who's perched on a cage.Archie, a yellow cockatiel, perched on an opened cage door.

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    One last trip-related photo: the pseudo souvenir mug I bought. It’s a “pseudo souvenir” in that I didn’t get it overseas1. I saw mugs like this while I was in Venice, found myself wanting one after I left, so I got one from Red Bubble. It arrived at my house this Monday… but let’s pretend I bought it home myself. 🤫

    A mug with the Veneto flag, showing the handle and part of the flag tails, on a bench. The front of the mug with the Veneto flag, showing part of the winged lion, on a bench.

    1. Well, I did buy it while I was overseas, and it probably originated from overseas, but I didn’t bring it home with me. ↩︎

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    A load of foraging lorikeets.

    A group of fourteen rainbow lorikeets foraging amongst a few bushes.
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    Nerding out at the Swiss Transport Museum, in Luzern. Super interesting! Can definitely recommend.

    A collection of stem locomotives in an exhibition centre. Tail of a Swiss Air aeroplane Cross-section of the Gotthard Base Tunnel outside exhibit.
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    Mark one more off the bucket list: travelling through the Gotthard Base Tunnel.

    A picture of a monitor inside a train carriage with some logos below it. The monitor has the following message: World Record! We are now travelling through the Gotthard Base Tunnel, which will take around 20 minutes. At 57 kilometres, this is the world's longest railway tunnel.
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    Hired a car and spent my last full day in Italy exploring a bit of the wider Veneto region. Visited the town my grandparents grew up in and also went on a small bush-walk up at Cansiglio Forest. The landscape was absolutely breathtaking. The photos I took do it no justice (and I took a lot of them).

    An alpine forest track, with a paddock with a small building on the left side, and a pine forrest on the right and middle distance. In the background are some mountains, with bare peaks that have a little bit of snow.
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    I know Venice is known for its canals, and they’re certainly something to behold, but this single rail tram-line blew me away.

    A red tram approaching tram-stop with the track consisting of a single rail.

    Edit: it occurred to me that these “trams” are running on regular tiers, and use this rail for the return current. That means they can get away with using just one overhead wire instead of two. I guess they can also use the rail for guiding the vehicle around curves as well? Seems like a bit of a disadvantage over other trolly-bus systems with trolly polls that can move around traffic.

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    Venice in the morning.

    The grand canal of Venice with two boats and a Bastille in the background, with a slightly cloudy sky.
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    I was wondering what to do for my second day in Bologna until something told me that Florence was less than an hour away. So I decided to take a day trip.

    Florence skyline, with the dome of the cathedral, and buildings alongside the river.
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    Spent a bit of time in the small but lovely university botanical gardens in Bologna this morning. Walking around a new city, I’ve found myself being attracted to parks and gardens. A bit more serene than the hussle and bussle one finds at buildings or squares.

    Under the shade of green trees of various species.
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    Breakfast in Parma. Naturally parmesan cheese is on the menu.

    Plate on a place-mat with a wholemeal dinner roll, some parmesan cheese, slice of Jarlsberg cheese, and prosciutto. A silver knife and fork are beside it.
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