Mary P and me.

I’m just back from three days in Maryborough — it still feels like home! — and I can never get over how the rich history and natural beauty of the river setting combines to infuse the streetscapes with a nostalgia and charm that I haven’t quite felt anywhere else. I took some long late afternoon walks, usually along the Mary River and through the gardens to the Wharf Street precinct. The writer P L Travers — author of Mary Poppins — was, of course, born in Maryborough and is celebrated there each year with a wonderful festival.  She was just a little older than my grandmother and I often wonder if they might have crossed paths when stopping to look at the birds and animals in ornamental cages on their own walks through the Gardens as children:

Here is a selfie of Mary Poppins and me.