Paradise Point.
We've only been here a couple of times before. It's on the northern end of the Gold Coast, in the state of Queensland, here in Australia. And on days like this, it's gorgeous.
We (my partner and I) came down this morning to go for a run somewhere different than just the same handful of places near home.
I forgot how much I like it here. There's a concrete path that runs alongside the water. It think the water is one of the many small rivers that lead out to the ocean. The water is salty and small boats cruises by between us and the large houses and small apartment buildings on the other side.
A parkrun course is located here, for good reason; there's a double out and back (ish) course along that concrete path, and with ample parking, decent toilets and several cafés nearby it's an ideal spot for runners to congregate every Saturday morning.
That's what pulled us here originally; parkrun. However, the enclosed pool, tacked onto the side of the river, the many convenient water fountains and the endless flow of happy people and what brought us back again.
I feel happy here, happy and calm.
This morning I said hello to a very old lady and grinned broadly at one of the many babies. I giggled inside as I watched a big naughty dog escape its human and so many tiny dogs run circles around each other.
I watched with amusement as small birds flited in between the spaces on the wire fence that protects the sand dunes from the heavy footfalls of too many humans, and watched in awe as an eagle circled high, way over our heads.
I smiled at a skinny blonde woman who I passed again and again as we both ran in opposite directions. She looked a lot like me.
I smiled as I listened to large Samoan women laughing and speaking their mother tongue. They didn't look much like me at all.
I appreciated the similarities and the differences and the beauty of both.
There is much to love about Paradise Point: the space and the people; the dogs and the children; the birds and the buildings; the facilities and trees; the runners, the parents and the picnic planners.
I'm glad we came here this morning. And I'm glad I could share it with you.
Here's the prompt that brought this post out of me:
Take one single photo, not more than one, in your city/town/village/location of something you think is beautiful and that you might think we will also. Explain what it is and why you think it's beautiful in a post of 300 words or more. The photo must be one you took yourself! Remember, focus on beauty, not just any old shit.
Here's the community where you can participate in weekly prompts such as this one.
{Photo taken by me, on my Google Pixel 2XL phone, tweaked for colour just a tiny bit using the Google Photo Editor on my phone. But... it did look pretty much exactly like that!}