Two heads in Tasmania

Posts from this trip are not going to be in any proper order....... I am still struggling with the technology a little. My miraculous card reader that was supposed to enable me to load photos onto my 1st generation I pad ( no camera ), has suddenly stopped working. So photos up to the end of the Tasmania leg of the trip can be posted.....but Melbourne and New Zealand will have to wait until I get back home. Oh well, I try hard not to get stressed by things over which I have no control !

So..... We left Perth on Australia Day......the day when Australia celebrates the arrival of the first fleet. Aboriginals call it Invasion Day. The press was full of debate about whether Australia day is a good thing or not. A compromise being suggested is that a celebration for all Australians about being Australian could be held on another day...... Thus not celebrating the taking of land from the first peoples. It has certainly added an interesting aspect to our trip to see this being debated. It hasn't been too hard to work out which newspapers are the ones we would never buy back home, and which we would trust !

We were delighted to see this kookaburra at such close quarters....in the Botanical gardens in Perth, on our walk to the open air cinema, on our last night in Perth.

Mark, relaxing on a bean bag, designed for easy viewing of the film at the open air cinema. 

On arrival in Tasmania, with tons of dirty washing, we were looking forward to using a washing machine we knew would be in our previously booked apartment in Hobart. We then discovered we had booked a hotel room  in an apartment hotel...... So, no washing machine. Mark asked if we could access one somewhere in the building, and 2 minutes later we were upgraded to a beautiful apartment, with views of Mt Wellington......and a washing machine !

Hobart Harbour

Hobart is lovely. Some of the older buildings are great......with ornate iron work, and beautiful Victorian facades. ( Must remember that the term Victorian, over here, means someone from The state of Victoria, I got very confused when a trivia question on the cricket scoreboard in Melbourne asked who was the First Victorian cricketer to score a century in a 20/20 match......hmmmm, I thought, surely they weren't playing 20/20 before 1901. I thought it had been invented just a few years ago. )

View from Hobart's Botanical gardens

The Best bit of our Tassy stay was probably the boat trip we took around the Tasmanian Peninsular. The scenery was incredible...rock formations I could only imagine, demonstrating the movement of the rocks and water over millions of years. We saw albatross.......dozens of them. They are so graceful, except when they land and try to take off.....it looks impossible. So, sensibly, they spend most of their lives in the air......apparently staying on the wing for the first 3 years of their life....they sleep whilst flying, they hardly flap a wing. They took my breathe away. I made no attempt to take photos of them....I was much too busy watching them.

We saw dolphins, who were clearly playing with the boat. They were right next to the boat, closer than I have ever seen them on previous " dolphin watching" trips. As the boat was so small, we really were at their level. We also saw huge colonies of male seals......huge brutes, basking on the rocks, building up their fat layers, to be the biggest and most attractive to the females who were apparently basking somewhere else.....waiting for the fat boys to arrive.

I will return to this trip again, but before I sign off today, I just want to mention having 2 heads. 

There is a wonderful art gallery in Tasmania, called MONA........containing the largest privately held modern art collection in the southern hemisphere. In the information leaflet about the stunning gallery ( architecturally, content and setting....all stunning) it says Tasmanian citizens can have free entry on proof that they are from Tassy...... Showing they have 2 heads. Apparently this is an Aussie joke.... People from Tassy have 2 heads. 

Approaching MONA by boat ( called the MONA Roma )

There were 2 English heads that could not have enjoyed being in Tasmania more. Why we thought 4 days was enough, I cannot imagine. 

Loving and concern about Utopia

Australia is an amazing country. I am fascinated by the history of European settlement here, not least because some of my family have come here to start new lives. The gold rush, the penal colonies, the harshness and beauty of the environment, the beautiful cities, the truly spectacular wild life......what's not to love ?

Anyone who saw John Pilger's "Utopia" recently, or happened to catch an amazing film called 

"Rabbit Proof Fence", will have, like me, become more aware of some of the horrors experienced by the aboriginal population of this amazing country. Forced abduction of children, serious attempts to breed out blackness and the continued view that the aborigines are " a problem" is a significant part of Australian history, but it is largely hidden from the experience of visitors. I think it is largely hidden from many white Australians. John Pilger's spoke to many white Australians in the course of his research for "Utopia" who clearly had no idea what he was talking about.

I noticed that at the start of each Test match ( I expect I will mention cricket and our dreadful performance against a superior force a few times while I am blogging from Australia....but not here) that Aboriginal elders have welcomed the spectators to tribal lands.  I haven't seen that before, and I don't suppose many people have thought that of course, the cricket grounds are on tribal lands.....it was all tribal land, until white Europeans arrived....not that long ago.....and took it.

Since we arrived, just a few days ago, we have found very little evidence of an indigenous population in our excursions. There was a brief mention about the foods aborigines ate at the shipwreck museum in Freemantle, nothing at all at the Royal Mint museum in Perth, which was fascinating and concentrated on the Europeans rush for gold in the 19 th century, and so far, nothing connected to the logging and saw mill industry that has dominated the recent history of the area in the south west that we are visiting now.

I love this place, but the racism beneath the surface is scary. Someone on the Pilger's programme said, when discussing ways to solve " the aboriginal problem"...... That to solve it, you wouldn't start where we are now. 

I will return to this issue while I am here..... I will count the number of times an awareness of an indigenous history is recognised...... But, I, like so many others, will love being here, love all the things I can see and do..... And I will be able to do nothing to improve anything. 

Beautiful Freemantle

I can't pretend I'm not loving it.

Mark by the Indian Ocean, Eagle Bay.

This huge wild kangaroo was just outsider our bedroom last night.

Another experiment

Well, this is just another quick try to post something with photos

Yes....it worked.......using the blogger app rather than accessing the site directly through the Internet.

Success, I hope.

Experimenting with John Denver memories.

Bags are packed, ready to go......leaving on a jet plane......don't know when I'll be back again ( not true........we will be back on 20 th Feb)

I decided to try out a quick post from my I Pad, to see if I could master the required technological skills....and to try out my new camera/IPad connector kit. So far, I have failed to be able to import photos saved on the I pad, unless they have first been saved to Picasa.....but I'm working on it.

As an aside,  many years ago, ( 43 years ago to be precise) I saw John Denver on stage at Wembley. He was the support act for "The Moody Blues". He sang "Leaving on a Jet Plane" then, he also juggled .....very strange. The tickets for the concert were 50p......... And I remember that they had 10/- in brackets, after the 50p as the UK had just " gone decimal".

Family Reunions

In less than a week, Mark and I will be a few hours into our long flight to Australia. It will be our third trip there, despite being sure that our first, was the trip of a lifetime, and one never to be repeated. ( Apparently everyone says that...and most people go back ).

I love this print , by Jessie Trail, of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Jessie Trail was an artist who sponsored immigrants to Australia, and she sponsored my uncle and his mother to go to Australia in 1927

When we went the first time, I had no idea that I had an Australian family. By the time I returned, I had discovered two first cousins and their families, as I had found out that my paternal grandfather had been “married” 3 times, simultaneously, and had 2 other families, apart from the one that included my own father. His first family, deserted by him just after WW1, emigrated to Australia in 1927.

My two Australian cousins....well, one now lives in New Zealand, are the grandchildren of my grandfather and his first and only legal wife. I am one of two grandchildren of his third and not so legal wife.

Mark and I meeting my Aussie cousins in 2010....they might not recognise the somewhat slimmer, post chemo  dark curly haired Pom cousin who meets them this time !

I met one of the Aussie cousins and his lovely wife on my last trip.....it was very emotional, particularly as he looks so much like my father. He, ( John ) has since been to England and we met up again then, and we correspond regularly.

I will meet, his brother ( Bill)...the NZ cousin, this time. We are travelling to New Zealand for the first time on this trip. I can’t wait to meet him...although again, we have corresponded regularly, since I “discovered” this branch of our family.

Looking forward to meeting you Bill !

A further treat for this trip to the other side of the world will be meeting another cousin...slightly more distant than John and Bill.

Apparently, my bigamist grandfather kept more than his wives secret from us. He never told my grandmother, or his son, my dad, that he was one of 6 children. His youngest brother, Francis was in the navy  and found himself in Australia during WW1, where he met an Australian woman, who he returned to marry in 1920. I will be meeting his great granddaughter on this trip too.

Francis Whelen....born in Birkenhead in 1890......my grandfather's youngest brother.....another of his secrets.

I find it quite haunting, that this year, 100 years after the start of WW1, I will be meeting the descendant of my great uncle, who made that journey all those years ago.

Francis, ( or Frank as he was known in Australia), with his wife, Vera-May and their son....probably about 1927......round about the time Franks' brother's deserted wife arrived in Australia, completely unaware that she had a brother in law living there already.

I hope to have the opportunity to blog a little from Australia and New Zealand in the next 6 weeks......but all will depend on internet connections and my ability to write on my I-pad.....never written blogs on it before, and as my I-pad is the earliest model, and doesn't come with an inbuilt camera, photos will have to be taken with my phone, so I cant be sure what I will be able to do !....We will see.

So, if you see nothing from me in the next few weeks, be assured that I am having a wonderful time, with members of my somewhat complicated family, in Perth, then Hobart, then Melbourne, then Wellington, Christchurch and other fascinating bits of the south island. ( I’m desperately trying to finish Eleanor Catton’s “The Luminaries” before I go......what an amazing book....but heavens above, it is long ! ).

When I return, I hope to know a bit more about my family, and plenty more about the gold rush in New Zealand.

Streeton's painting, from 1890, "Whelan on a Log"
Those colours couldn't come from anywhere but Australia !
I have a print of this on my study wall.

Properly involved this year

I’m still reading blogs....I’m just not “interacting” as much as I like to. I am sure it is a reaction to feeling well, and  being able to be involved in lots of Christmas activities. Last year I was an observer from the sidelines. This year it has been so wonderful to make a Christmas cake, shop and wrap presents, bake, make mincemeat, go to nativity performances ( even if one of the schools I visited  allowed their KS2 performance of every single song from Mary Poppins to go on a bit ! ) etc etc.

 

Liam was a sheep in his nativity play

So, I intend to get back to blogging properly soon....reading, commenting and being involved in the lives of all the people, whose blogs I love to read. However, until then, just a very brief picture blog of a few important moments during the last few weeks.

 

Izzie in one of her Christmas outfits

This chutney didn't last long

 

My grandmother's rolling pin, mum's lemon squeezer which came free with a packet of Omo in 1958, and 2 of my cousin Margaret's basic cook books, which contain everything anyone ever needs to know about baking.

Baby Flynn with his new hat and giraffe, presents from Jess, crocheted by one of her friends on her teaching course.

One very happy nana with Liam and Izzie

Dexter and Clark, allowed to dismantle the gingerbread house, as they don't like Christmas pudding...or trifle.

A really happy little boy....Clark, who did nothing but smile and laugh, all over the holiday.

 

Santa left a footprint. His reindeers also left some poo ( peppermint creams covered in chocolate) but Izzie refused to open any presents until the poo had been cleared up).


 

I hope you all have had as good a Christmas as we did... and that 2014 is excellent for all of us.

PARKRUN

I can’t believe it’s been over 3 weeks since I last blogged. Life has been hectic in our house here in Hebden Bridge as we get closer to Christmas. We’ve tried to see as much of the grandchildren as possible. So, a theatre trip with the 3 eldest, some drop in visits to their homes and what has become a regular Saturday morning get together have all been lovely.

It is the Saturday morning meetings that I want to blog about today. It all revolves around “ parkrun”.

“parkrun” is an organisation that holds free weekly 5km timed runs, all around the world. The runs are open to everyone, from complete beginners to Olympic standard runners. They cost nothing to enter, they are safe, well marshalled, and very easy to take part in. In the UK, they operate in 236 locations, and to date, have organised 23,172 runs !

Sometimes the runs have themes.... a couple of weeks ago, it was superheroes....Matt is on the far right.

 Once you have registered on their web site and  printed off your bar code, you can turn up at any run, run, and then within an hour, receive a text telling you your official time, and position.

I have competed in the Huddersfield parkrun 3 times. The first time I only ran 3 kms, and was exhausted so gave up.  ( I was very proud of myself though.....3kms seemed like a long way to me, and after the year of illness and recovery that I have had, 3kms was pretty amazing ).

 

My next attempt actually had me completing the whole 5kms. I came 442 out of 448 runners. It took me 44 minutes 48 seconds, and stepson Matthew, and step daughter Jodie, who had both already completed their runs, came back and joined me, to help me “sprint” across the finish line. It was very emotional, and I knew I was hooked.

Jodie pushing 2 year old Izzie, Sarah Jane pushing 3 month old Flynn, Dexter, 5, enjoying himself despite the damp conditions.

 

My run last week, was actually slower. I took 46 minutes to complete the two and a half circuits of Huddersfield’s Greenhead park. I was 452 out of 454 runners. My strategy is to run a bit, walk a bit, run a bit, walk a bit.....and my plan is to try to run a bit more each time. Who knows how long it will take me to catch up with daughter in law Sarah Jane, who somehow manages to do it in under 40 minutes, pushing a buggy with 3 month old Flynn. Or Jodie, who did a fantastic 32 minutes last week, or Jess, who did a 28 minute run in Liverpool last weekend.....or of course, Matthew, the family champion, who was overweight and couldn’t run at all 2 years ago.....and who now looks amazing, regularly runs 10k for various charities and completes 5km in far less than half the time I do.

some of the marshalls.....all volunteers, encouraging and cheering.

 It is not actually competitive at all. Everyone competes against themselves, trying to improve their time. The volunteer stewards cheer on the elite runners, those running with their children, and the slow coaches like me , who struggle to keep going. In fact, if it hadn’t been for the marshalls encouraging me last week, I think I would have given up at about 4kms.

The atmosphere is brilliant. Families run together, or support each other, cheering everyone on whether they are friends or complete strangers. Between 400 and 600 people, and their supporters are all brought together, for an hour every Saturday morning, in Huddersfield’s lovely Greenhead Park

Matthew and Sarah’s eldest son, Dexter, will be 6 in March. He has now completed 12 parkruns. Sometimes he does brilliantly, running much faster than I can, and sometimes he takes it a bit easier...stopping for a quick wee behind a tree.

The photo being held up on the right shows Dexter, with his dad, Matt. 15 seconds of fame....and he's only 5.

 

Last week, the BBC’s One show announced the candidates for Sports Personality of the Year, and asked people to send in their photos of any sporting heroes they had. Sarah sent in a photo of Dexter on one of his runs.....and they showed it on the programme. Dexter was incredibly excited. His teacher saw it, his great grandmother nearly fell of her chair when she saw it, many of his friends saw it. Then last week at the park run, as he crossed the line, many supporters and regulars cheered the TV star across the line.

It has become an important part of our week. We arrive at Carole’s house ( Mark’s ex wife) at just after 8.30am......decisions are made about who is looking after the children who are not running ( usually Mark ). Carole and Peter get on with preparing a huge breakfast for after the run, and us runners head off to the park. The klaxon goes at 9am, and by 10am, we are sitting round the breakfast table, ready to replenish the calories we have used up on the run.

 

Well....I never thought I’d be blogging about running. Watch this space for reports of new personal bests over the next few months !