This surely wasn’t an easy decision. After 6 months in Australia and a Spring Break backpacking through New Zealand, I have taken HUNDREDS of beautiful, incredible pictures, and somehow I am supposed to pick just 1 that is meaningful to me?! I think it is pretty obvious as to why I took this picture. It was another raining, dreary day in Melbourne, Australia, one of my first days there actually, and when I stepped outside of my apartment building I saw the most beautiful rainbow I had ever seen. Little did I realize that gigantic, arching rainbows are all too common in Australia. The contrast between the dark grey sky and the bright, colorful rainbow is dramatic and amazing and I felt lucky to even snap a shot of it! Now that I look at it, almost 7 months later, I realize that the picture is more meaningful now than on the day I took it. Not only does it encompass the ever changing weather that Melbourne is notorious for, but it includes other important things about the city itself. For one, you can’t miss the giant Australian flag waving in the wind. Australia has so much pride for its land and history and the flag looks regal and beautiful underneath the arching rainbow. Second, the building in the bottom left hand corner is a famous piece of architecture that belongs to one of the country’s finest institutions, The University of Melbourne. That very building is where I spent my late nights studying and writing papers, trying to keep up with the brilliant minds that attended the school. In the bottom right, you can make out the sky scrapers that belonged to Melbourne, now one of my favorite cities in the world. For a city it is fairly small, but it is famous for its art and architecture that I loved so, so much. Lastly, the entire image is blocked by a web of what look like power lines, though they are really the tram cables. The tram is the main form of transportation in Melbourne and they scatter all of the city blocks and suburban neighborhoods. Taking the tram is the quintessential Melbourne activity, it gets you where you need to go fast and without traffic. It is the easiest way to travel the city that I love so much.
Looking back on this picture now, it holds so much more meaning than it did before. Being back in the United States, I can only picture this intersection outside of my apartment in my mind, though at one time they were roads I knew all too well. I never thought I would miss the trams or the University of Melbourne, but this picture shows all too well my emotions about that place. The beautiful Australian flag stands tall with an incredible rainbow arching above it.
mollyriddles 