I can’t believe that I didn’t see one rabbit on our Phillip Island Easter break, and that’s a good thing. But what I did see on this Island sojourn was spectacular. Grey geese, penguins, koalas, kangaroos, draught horses, vintage caravans, a grand prix motor cycle circuit, cavorting seals, Aussie surfers, foreign tourists, tangerine sunsets and a lunar eclipse. What an eclectic mix!
No visit to Phillip Island is complete without Continue reading
On Sunday I witnessed one of the most romantic and courageous acts I’ve seen. It was at a 60th birthday party. Our friend Mick was celebrating his birthday while lamenting the speed of life which had bought him to this point. He was surrounded by 26 friends and family and had just shouted us all to a delicious lunch. Hilarious anecdotes of his life bounced around the room and there were many heartfelt speeches rejoicing in a life well lived and promises to share more adventures in the future. Maybe you think a 60th birthday would be a dull event, but no, by that age the fine art of enjoyment has been perfected.
Mick has been married to Mary Jo for over 25 years and she stood to deliver her speech, however, she surprised us all, and instead of speaking she Continue reading
I am enjoying the wonderful absence of urgency and stress. We have had two weeks at home after the trip to New Zealand and there is plenty of time to do anything that needs to be done, but nothing seems particularly important. I love lazy mornings with slow starts, problem is my lazy mornings can easily run into the afternoon.
Make new friends but keep the old
One is silver and the other gold
This old refrain keeps echoing through my mind. These eight weeks have been full of precious new and old friends and family. The intensity of the delight in reconnecting with people has surprised me.
We have had many conversations with friends about how much you need to work at our stage of life. Could work look differently than it does now? Longer leave periods? Part time? Less stressful jobs? Can you retire too young? How much money do you really need to retire? How do you have Continue reading
It is such a rich experience to stay in a friends’ home, rather than in the anonymous blandness of a hotel. Friends delight in introducing you to the best of their world, the places that mean the most to them and the people who give meaning to their day to day lives.
We have just spent four nights with our friends Suzanne and Darryl in Puketurua, a tiny place in the middle of the North Island, New Zealand. I met Suzanne and Darryl when I was about 18 years old, with my ex-husband. Our relationship was full of the laughter, passion and intensity of two young couples in love and at the threshold of their lives. Over the last forty years we have only seen them a handful of times, nonetheless they have embraced Steven and when we catch up it’s as if we saw them yesterday.
Here are four of the diamonds from their lives that they shared with us:
The Table on the Deck: We ate all meals in this beautiful rural vista, fresh country food accompanied by the sound of cows lowing. These were joyous meals full of laughter and great conversation. Despite some tough times this couple has maintained a great passion for life, and each other. Suzanne and Darryl reckon that lethargy and joylessness kill you, so you better get off your arse, do something and have fun while doing it. No space for complaints or whinging at this table.
The Blue Springs, Te Waihou: “We’ll do a bit of a walk” they said, “just an hour or so by a spring”. What an understatement. The Blue Springs were shockingly beautiful. Crystal clear blue waters with mesmerising vivid green plants that drift in the current. I understand Coca Cola holds 90% of the water rights, and the Spring supplies 70% of the countries bottled water.
The Mystery Tour: We’ll take you up to see our friends place, you’ll like it there. Their friends Phil and Karen have an idyllic spot which they call home. Previously a trout hatchery, they have their own private spring of crystal clear, icy cold water, so cold our feet hurt when we dangled them in. Breathtakingly beautiful.
The day was accompanied by two gorgeous Blue Healer, Border Collie cross dogs with stunning mottled coats and a ginger kitten who snuggled up to them, homemade shortbread biscuits, New Zealand wine, great company and a perfect summer’s day. Bliss.
We had a couple of trips to the Rhubarb Café in Arapuni for great coffee and more laughs with the owners Louise and Bryan. Delicious food delivered with down to earth New Zealand customer service, served on old fashioned Formica tables, just like mum used to have. An unexpected find.
After four days with Suzanne and Daryl my heart was warmed by the fire of this wonderful long burning friendship.
My niece Melissa was born when I was 19 years old and working in Queenstown, just before I headed to Australia. I remember queuing up to use the pay phone in downtown Queenstown so I could ring home and find out whether my sister’s baby had been born. That’s how you kept in touch before mobile phones. I was very excited to be an aunty for the first time. I had been diligently knitting a baby jacket and booties in a soft mint green. In those days you had no idea of what sex the baby would be so mint green was a safe colour, appropriate for either a boy or a girl. For some reason I thought that the beautiful and delicate layette should be finished with a hard dark brown ribbon. Maybe this was my clumsy gesture towards hoping that Continue reading
I value kindness, that old fashioned virtue of helping out another human being in a gentle and unassuming manner. Simple acts such as picking up a toy dropped unnoticed from a pram, giving directions to a stranger, checking on a neighbour or giving a heartfelt compliment can make such a difference to the recipient’s day, way beyond the magnitude of the act. More profound acts of kindness take time, effort and commitment. As a psychologist I have heard many sad stories where small acts of kindness would have made a significant difference to someone’s life. Kindness can be contagious and I like to imagine that even the smallest kind act can Continue reading
We’ve been on the run for about a week, maybe just a bit more, and time is starting to slide. I have very little idea of what day it is and it feels as if I have been away for a long time. Bliss. This somehow feels different than a holiday. Having six months off creates a new perspective. Sorry work but I am not missing you.
Our pace has now dramatically slowed as we are spending time with my 65 year old sister who uses a walking stick and has challenges with mobility. It’s a humbling exercise in patience, one which I struggle with.
Now with my family of birth I have taken up the position as youngest sister and slid easily into the middle seat in the back of the car, a place where I suspect many youngest sisters live. My daughter will laugh at this as often her place in our family car is the middle seat. There are not many situations where I am now the “youngest” of anything so I will relish my place.
I am already getting tired of restaurant and fast food meals which means that for the first time in a long time I am thinking about cooking, not that I am doing any. Steven cooked bacon and eggs for dinner and it tasted like a treat.
As the frenzy of work has absented my head I have space for other ideas to float by but right now I’m not thinking of much more than how extraordinarily beautiful Queenstown is.
Steven and I are muddling along beau
tifully together… there will be a time along this journey when I suspect we will need time out from each other.
I’ll update regularly about our experience on the run… but I couldn’t possibly set a timetable for that….or anything.
Sometimes, despite the planning, things don’t quite go the way you envisaged. Anne and I have been working toward running away for a number of months, and today we set off……on a bus, and 5 hours late.
A bus was not part of the plan, but it became a late inclusion when last night Vigin Australia advised us that our 9.15am direct flight to Queenstown today was cancelled…….”but do not fear Steve, we have booked you on a flight from the Gold Coast to Christchurch at 5.45pm, with an overnight stop, continuing through to Queenstown on Thursday morning, arriving at your final destination at 9.50am”
Great I thought – that means I only miss 18 hours of my holiday, a night out with friends in Queenstown, and the bus to connect with our 4 day Otago Rail trail bike trip. mmmmmmm take a deep breath.
After a long wait on the phone, we finally saved the Otago Rail Trail bus connection, getting an earlier flight out of Christchurch and arriving in Queenstown at 7.50am – still a long night ahead, but hey – it’s an adventure.
We followed Virgin’s instructions today, and caught a cab to the Brisbane domestic terminal (a little early because that’s how I like it), only to be told…. “sorry Steve, you should have gone to the International terminal…. you were given the incorrect information last night…. here’s a ticket to catch the shuttle bus to the International terminal”. So dutifully, we headed back outside and caught the shuttle. Arriving at the International terminal, where we were met with nothing… the place was deserted! Still holding things together, we found a cleaner who was very helpful….” go up there” she said. So we did. From up there, we were directed, back “down there”. Gee, this is great. Finally, we found a little Office with a Virgin sign outside, so I knocked. A young lady directed us back “up there…… someone is on their way to assist”. We didn’t find that person, At 2pm, when the bus was due to depart, we were still lost, when our names were called over the airport public address system……. asking us to hot foot it to level 2, as our bus was waiting. Finally, acknowledgement that we were expected.
I’m writing this blog on my iPhone (that’s interesting…. I need my young eyes on for that) sitting on the bus from Brisbane to the Gold Coast to connect with that Christchurch flight, looking forward to a Bloody Mary (our favourite holiday starter).
I’ll see you on the trail…..no doubt starting out with less sleep than we had planned.
If everything else from here on in goes to plan, this is just a hiccup. What’s your worst travel planning story?
How do you celebrate your national day, and do you really know what and why you are celebrating?
It’s a bit sad when you have to resort to Google to confirm what the origin of the day is all about, but that’s what I did. For the record, Australia Day is celebrated on the 26th of January each year and marks the anniversary of the 1788 arrival of the first fleet of British ships at Port Jackson, New South Wales, and raising of the flag of Great Britain at that site by Governor Arthur Phillip. (Thanks Wikipedia)
Whilst that’s the historic significance, today I’d suggest that most Australian’s use the day to celebrate our freedom, wealth and safety, the diversity of our community, and the spirit of “mateship”, all attributes that allow us to call Australia “The Lucky Country”. That’s how we spent the day.
Whilst we don’t get hung up on tradition, we always seem to find ourselves spending the day with close friends, sharing the good weather, great food, chilled wine, stories from the year just past, and our plans ahead. Always with plenty of laughter. Where would we be without others to share Continue reading
I love a good wedding, and Felicity and Job’s was one of the best. It was a spectacularly beautiful summer’s day as they married in the chapel at Sanctuary Cove. The glorious weather was truly appreciated as the day before had seen a deluge of rain resulting in closed roads due to flooding.
How wonderful to see families and friends come together for such a joyous occasion. The chapel was full of children laughing and smiling, I’m so glad they were included.
It’s such an honour to be invited to a wedding, to share that special time when a couple make their commitment to each other. Felicity and Job had written their own vows and the heartfelt expression of their love for each other, and their hopes for the future, ensured many tears Continue reading
