Where is olinda village

The wind was blowing the smoke away, so he could see the flames in sharp relief against the dark sky. His evacuating neighbors brought their horses to his yard so he could keep an eye on them. All night, he watched the fire circle the village -- coming around the east side, then along the northern ridge and back down into the canyon on the south.

Fire engines moaned up and down the steep hills. He and a neighbor helped put it out with a garden hose -- aided by a booster pump in the swimming pool. Helen MacDougal and her daughter had first tried to drive home Sunday, but they were stopped and referred to a community center. There they ran into neighbors. She and Megan left for the checkpoint on Carbon Canyon Road. When no one was looking, they started walking the two miles home through the smoke.

The low hills gathered close on either side of them, incinerated, black and bare. Helicopters circled, dropping water. Partway home, they caught a ride from someone who had never left. They raced from the spot where they were dropped off to their street. MacDougal could barely contain herself. Many exquisite gardens can be found in Olinda. The Dandenong Ranges Botanic Garden consist of 43 hectares of scenic parkland which feature blazing colours of daffodils, camellias, rhododendrons and azaleas during the spring, set amongst lakes and lawns with lookouts, a cafe and display hall.

To the east of the gardens is the R. The word Brea, in fact, is Spanish for tar. But deep in those very same hills, in the crevices of Carbon Canyon, the home Olinda Village today is a much-sought-after neighborhood, richer in quality-of-life attributes than in oil.

Olinda Village, residents say, provides the serenity of country living. Sitting deep in the hills of Carbon Canyon, the village, which sits on six streets and was built in , is surrounded by hills, fauna and wildlife. The community, surrounded by open space and hills, enjoys cool breezes blowing through the canyon by day and quiet nights punctuated only by the sound of coyotes and owls. They appreciate open space and they know they have to be active to protect it.

There are a few 1- and 2-acre horse properties, but most homes are built on 15,square-foot lots. And there are newer adobe-style homes as well. Many Olinda Village residents are original owners, and others who moved here later have stayed put.