This is very bad. Protests being banned for any reason are not going to make potential terrorists less angry and unpredictable. #nsw #nswpol https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-25/public-assemblies-banned-14-days-in-sydney-under-new-protest-law/106178406

BTW here is the groovy kangaroo-based Xmas decoration on Flinders Street Station: #christmas #melbourne

We're off to a festive lunch. Merry Christmas everyone. :) #christmas #melbourne cc @narrelle

This is cool - the Irish language is making a comeback in Northern Ireland. https://www.smh.com.au/world/europe/the-irish-language-was-driven-out-of-belfast-now-it-s-coming-back-20251202-p5nk5v.html

We're off to a festive lunch. Merry Christmas everyone. :) #christmas #melbourne cc @narrelle

Our Xmas tree is looking pretty good now it's surrounded by presents (mostly for other people, I should point out). Merry Christmas all. What do you have planned for the big day?

It still amazes me that you can be arrested for holding a small paper sign that says you are against the wholesale murder of an entire ethnic group, but seemingly not for actually doing the murdering.

Fun blog post about festive season food traditions over the years here in Melbourne: #food #christmas #melbourne https://blogs.slv.vic.gov.au/such-was-life/social-life-customs/feasts-of-christmas-past/

Now free for all to read... in my recent cross-Europe trip I had to deal with seven different currencies across the eight nations I visited. Clearly that was going to be a hassle, so it made me wonder before departure - could I possibly do without cash altogether? #europe #money #travel […]

This Fitzroy cafe tells me they're open all the way through next week, including the public holidays, so here's the location if you're seeking caffeine over the festive season: https://maps.app.goo.gl/As1URQ7DK8hZqM7s9?g_st=com.tapbots.Ivory.shareextension

I'd kinda like Telstra to fix its 5G before we even think about 6G. Since the 3G network closed down, there have been mini-black spots all across Melbourne. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-24/when-australia-could-get-6g-after-trump-us-announcement/106170702

Spotted this on my walk through Fitzroy this morning. This must be the shortest street sign in the suburb: #melbourne #Fitzroy

Was crossing Bourke Street yesterday when I saw these four westbound trams all lined up. Don’t know what was happening there, but it was geometrically appealing. #melbourne #tram #trams

Yesterday @NarrelleMHarris and I found a pack of Polish potato cake mix in the cupboard and used it instead of toast under our poached eggs this morning. Great! Nice texture, and stays hot for ages. We used to love the classic potato cake dish with goulash when we lived in Poland. #poland #food

Good piece about conquering fear of flying. Oddly I went through a period of this around 2014; from memory I'd experienced a lot of unusually turbulent flights around them, which coincided with that MH plane going missing. After a few years it faded away, and I seem back to normal now. I still […]

Harsh but fair. "While not equating lives lost to sporting defeats, this Ashes campaign might fairly be seen as among the most ill-conceived British expeditions since Scott’s doomed venture. It was equivalent to preparing for an English Channel swim by doing a few laps of a heated pool." […]

I find it somewhat annoying how a lot of businesses close *before* Xmas nowadays. I'm writing in Fitzroy Library today, and hunting around for a nearby cafe that's open (why are cafes so terrible at updating their public holiday hours via social media?). #melbourne

Back in 2018, I took the Maglev between Longyang Road and Pudong Airport. The route was so short that the train was only able to get to it's top speed for something like a minute before it had to start slowing down again. The new Chuo Shinkansen is supposed to go from Tokyo to Osaka and be […]

New at my Patreon... As a working travel writer I stay in a lot of hotels of different sizes and classes. But no matter how big or small the accommodation,I have one test I always apply. On the first morning I come down to breakfast and ask this question: "Can you make me an omelette?" Read […]

The new Sydney Fish Market is about to open; looks good. I wonder if they'll rename the nearest light rail stops to reflect the move from the old market? #sydney #market #fish […]

This is something I can get behind, without question. Widespread gun ownership is inherently undemocratic IMO, as it causes a power imbalance between citizens. #guncontrol #australia https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/australians-unite-in-backing-gun-reform-20251221-p5npaf.html

Blue sky! I like it. Good morning all. #melbourne

Timing is everything! https://dice.camp/@davej/115761788019222811

Now free for all to read.... This is one of my favourite Berlin landmarks, in one of my favourite parts of the German capital: Alexanderplatz: Image of the week: Berlin's universal clock https://www.patreon.com/posts/image-of-week-133790984 #berlin #germany

Jeez that's tough. Can I afford to give myself a Christmas bonus this year? 🤔 https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12-22/christmas-bonus-boosts-staff-morale-but-employers-may-struggle/106125160

Apparently I'm an Oracle. :) https://aus.social/@timrichards/wrapstodon/2025/0d7bd866e8e5a1a8 #wrapstodon2025

Oh dear https://mastodon.social/@anon_opin/115759074895182889

Pointless. Strangely it reminds me of those horrible orange-flavoured biscuits in Arnotts assortments. https://uff.rip/@farben/115759251986669929

If you comment on my toots from #bsky, then I can't respond to you unless you follow @ap.brid.gy .

In Berlin this year I stayed at a *new* hotel which only had two spare power points per room. And these were rooms designed for two guests! Two people could easily have six devices to charge between them. Cue me unplugging the TV etc to charge stuff. #travel […]

Never quite get used to these late sunsets before they start shortening again. Anyone taking advantage of the early sunrises to get up at 6am? ;) #melbourne

I think this is why fascists love AI art, not because it is good, but because it is bad. Not because it is original, but because it is stolen. To make art as an expression of skill and craft and humanity reinforces humanity. To push a button that steals art and call it your own is domination.

I'm meeting my brother later for an explore of Melbourne's new train stations. This new rail tunnel is becoming a great excuse to meet up with people I haven't seen for a while. :) #melbourne #train #trains

Horse race journalism, privileging spin and opinion polls over journalism, at its very worst. "One leader has handled the Bondi attack aftermath well. It’s not Anthony Albanese or Sussan Ley," the headline says. Who's the "leader" in question? Bloody Chris Minns. "Contrast all of this with […]

Awkward. "Now comes the news that this airline somehow managed to leave one of its old Boeing passenger jets, a 737-200 registered as VT-EHH, gathering dust in Kolkata Airport for 13 years, having completely forgotten it owned it in the first place. "In fact, when Air India was first contacted […]

Was a horrible clammy grey-sky La Niña day this morning, and suddenly it's turned into beautiful blue sky summer. I approve, and Joan of Arc agrees with me. #melbourne #summer

Still somewhat surprised at the number of centre-left people prepared to play the performing monkey in the X Nazi circus.

i'm not into being a serf to the AI text/visual generator delusion. it has benefited me in no way at all, the only people excited about it are those who see it as a path to eliminating creative work. AI has a place in a world with massive data everywhere, THIS IS NOT IT. i'm tired.

Nice shot I took across Ballarat station yesterday. I like the slightly rusty roof, a touch of heritage architecture there. #ballarat

Yet *another* tedious sweet food outlet for international students opened near us this morning. Bit boring. Could we have a kebab place instead? #melbourne

How could you make influencers even more dodgy? Create AI versions of them! "Travel companies, tourism boards and other businesses are turning to AI-created influencers like Radhika to lower costs, control messaging and create content more quickly, and human influencers fear they’re being […]

New at my Patreon... Visiting the Victorian goldfields town of Creswick, we took in fine old buildings and monuments - then admired a park devoted to a classic Australian children's book: #victoria #creswick #book #books https://www.patreon.com/posts/dateline-town-of-146255202

@timrichards 'Let Route 66 rest in peace and instead tackle one of the country’s many other stunning road trips.' Five years ago I had need to drive from Chicago to Los Angeles, so instead of the Interstates, or the remaining bits of Route 66, we did the Griswald […] [Original post on aus.social]

Each year Traveller puts out a list of underrated and overrated destinations, as decided by its various writers. Here's the underrated destination list – my three items in it are Utrecht, Netherlands; villages of Transylvania, Romania; and Sofia, Bulgaria. Enjoy. :) #travel […]

Hello all, @NarrelleMHarris and I are back in the Real World™ after four days away at the RACV Goldfields Resort near Creswick, north of Ballarat. Great stay, very relaxing, did a lot of reading. We stuck the phones in a drawer and didn't go online at all, which is something I'd recommended to […]

I'm on a V/Line train to Creswick with @NarrelleMHarris, we're off on a reading (no online activity) holiday for four days. See you on Friday. #travel #train #trains

Now free for all to read... How did I manage with all the languages and currencies on my train trek from London to Istanbul. I muddle through: #europe #train #trains #money #languages #travel https://www.patreon.com/posts/muddling-through-134075348

About 9.30pm last night I sat on the Melbourne GPO steps eating a sandwich and watched people walking by. Great atmosphere, lots of families seeing the Myer Christmas windows; along with hand-holding couples of all ages. Warm night, had the relaxed feel of the festive season approaching and […]

Today we are calling on institutions around the world to take control of their #digitalsovereignty, including their social accounts. Governments should communicate directly with their citizens on open platforms, not through the mouthpiece of a corporation […]

How it started/how it's going with the whole job search thing. TLDR: NOT GOOD. But I've had a seasonal gig and it's been... really nice, actually. Go figure.