Category Archives: Expat moments

A Cracking Good Read…

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I love to read…anything and everything…and even as a little girl, I never went anywhere without a book tucked under my arm. (My Facebook WeRead library is on my blog page so you can see what I’ve been reading, would like to read and some of my favourites…if you’re interested, that is). But I digress – the point of all this is that I have decided to re-read a couple of books by one of my all-time favourite authors, Matthew Reilly.

Matthew is an Australian who has written a number of fast-paced action novels (Ice Station, Temple, Contest, Scarecrow to name a few) but the series I have loved best is the Jack West series: Seven Ancient Wonders, Six Sacred Stones and then Five Greatest Warriors which is due for release in Oct 09…with such a long wait for an impatient soul like myself, to help bide the time until this latest book is released, I have embarked on the Seven Ancient Wonders again. And what a book!

The first time I read this, I could not put it down (and finished it at about 3am) and as I curled up on the couch yesterday afternoon, I could feel the same thrill grip me as I joined Jack, Lily and the rest of the team on their hunt for the world’s greatest monuments and the ‘treasure’ within. I love the way the action is combined with history and archaelogy and the suggestion of ‘meaning’ behind things like the Pyramids at Giza and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, even though its fiction, just adds to my love of the story.

You’ll be pleased to know that I did put it down last night (because J wanted to sleep so – lights out!) and I have just over half left to read…then it will be the Six Sacred Stones and then…a really long wait until October. Matthew, if you’re reading this, are you sure you couldn’t advance me a copy? Please??

The Eye in the Sky…

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In honour of my friend K departing for Down Under this week (well today actually!), yesterday we embarked on an action-packed day in London town to celebrate her penultimate 24 hours in Ol’ Blighty…and to get the very best overview, we started off with a trip on the London Eye (http://www.londoneye.com/). This large ‘wheel’ began its life on the south bank of the Thames on New Year’s Eve 1999 to celebrate the new millenium…and during the 30min trip, provides the most spectacular views of London. I’ve included some of my pics below for you to have a squiz yourself…
Next we took a River Cruise which started at London Eye and chugged down river just past Tower Bridge and back again – another fascinating way to see and learn about the history of London although the colonial in me did flinch a little on the inside to learn that St Katherine’s Docks was where the convicts were assembled for transportation to Australia. No pics of this to share yet as my camera battery chose this moment to advise that it was awfully tired and needed to rest – timing is everything!

After this we wandered through two of London’s loveliest parks – St James’ Park & Green Park. One of the things I love about Londoners is their absolute celebration of gorgeous sunny weather – lots of people get out into the parks/along the riverbanks to lunch, sleep, play and even have business meetings – yes, I walked past some semi-serious coffee & compendium types sitting in the ‘deck-chairs-for-hire’ in Green Park. There is a real sense of ‘making the most of it’ that I don’t think we have in Australia but maybe that’s a case of ‘too much’ sunny weather and familiarity breeding a bit of contempt.
Anyhow, K is off tonight so it will just be me in my cosy (aka small) flat again so stay tuned to see what other adventures come my way…

View of back of Charing Cross Station

View of London

View of St Paul’s Cathedral dome

View over St James’ Park to Buckingham Palace

View of Houses of Parliament at Westminster & Big Ben

The Incident of the Kite in the Tree…

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We were back in East Anglia for a couple of days to bury J’s Mum and so there were a couple more ‘Kites on Rushmere Heath’ episodes. J just wanted one more go before we left yesterday so off he trundled, kites in hand. An hour or so later, just as we were wondering if he was on his way back for dinner, a dejected J returned to tell us the string on his favourite kite broke…and the kite itself was caught in a tree!

Well after dinner, J, his dad & I set off for the Heath on our mission – you can see how prepared we were…


So we sent J up the ladder with a really long pole and…..

TAH-DAH!

Now that’s a happier face!!

I think an old English law (Sod’s) came into play but my theory is it had to happen eventually!

Goodbyes…

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We’ve been away for a few days for J’s Mum’s funeral and it was with sadness that we said our goodbyes on Monday 6th April (another beautiful Spring day). As the people whose lives she touched gathered to celebrate her life and wish her peace in whatever journey lies next for her, the family bond seemed to grow palpably stronger as husband, sons, and grandchildren drew comfort from each other and the extended family around them.

After the service and the formalities of the day were behind us, we walked across to Rushmere Heath and flew some kites – there was something about the soft hazy sunlight and the quiet dipping and whirling of the kites that was incredibly therapeutic and three generations of ‘S’ seemed to find a gentler space after the emotional intensity of the day.

There was a decided ‘nip’ in the air when we were done but we returned with faces flushed with fresh air and after fish and chips for dinner (my fourth takeaway dinner in a row!) and some family stories, I fell into bed tired but complete, having at last said my goodbyes…

What’s it all about, Alfie…

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Since becoming unemployed there has been all sorts of chilling out and gadding about going on but at the times in between, when everyone is at work and there is just me sitting at my front window in the sunshine, I have made a little friend. So let me introduce you to Alfie Bear…

Alfie arrived during my last days at Alpha in January and spends his days enjoying the sunshine and watching the squirrels, birds & numerous neighbour cats from my front window. He’s quite a good little bear – always up for cuddles, always smiling and very well-behaved although that mischievous smile makes me think that when I am not looking, he climbs down from his chair by the window and runs around shouting ‘I’m a real bear!’ with Pinocchio-like abandon. He is a huge fan of X-Factor and CSI (just like his Mum) but there is some debate about whether his CSI fave is Dad’s preference – Miami – or Mum’s – NY though he likes them all really. He also likes nothing better than a huge honey sandwich and I suspect that left to his own devices, his little Alfie paws dip straight into the honey jar!

Family & friends…

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A busy weekend has just gone by, leaving us both quite exhausted by the whirlwind of activity…for me it was off to a hen’s party on Saturday to see my friend giving her singledom a last hoorah…in two weeks time, she will be a Mrs! Even though it wasn’t the big/late night for me that it was for others, I’m glad I was there for just a couple of hours to be part of it. Even though we are in limbo with the sadness of J’s Mum passing away, I wanted her to know that the happy occasions are just as important to celebrate as the sad ones…

Sunday was pretty much filled with family – J’s 15 yo daughter dances and was part of a big show that her dance school stages every two years. We picked her up just before lunchtime on Sunday (already tired from doing the matinee and evening shows on Saturday!) and then hung around for an hour before attending the matinee ourselves – 4 hours covering three themes: The Sleeping Beauty (ballet), Cats (free dance) and a mix of modern tunes & performances (modern & tap) with A having quite a few apperances in all three. Faves were def. Thriller and the Graveyard Mix as well as A’s turn in part of the Britney ‘homage’…and who can resist all those tiny tots in the cute red tutus who wriggle about when they are supposed to be ‘sleeping’ (in Sleeping Beauty) and are far more interested in finding Mum & Dad in the audience. Way too cute – and testament to the fact that motherhood is not for me – they may be cute but it doesn’t make me clucky!

The ladybird…

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I was sitting at my window last Wednesday when a ladybird landed on my daffodils – so very red and bright against the pale yellow blooms – I haven’t seen a ladybird in years but as I was admiring this tiny little creature, a faint voice echoed in my head – a visit from a ladybird precedes death. An old wives tale I thought…

We were about to head up to see J’s (partner) Mum who had been diagnosed with cancer just prior to Christmas…a phone call earlier in the day had told us that she had taken quite a sudden turn for the worst overnight and that we should get to Ipswich as quickly as possible. As we left, we got the call to say she’d passed away…

We’ve spent the best part of the last week in Ipswich with J’s family, making arrangements and supporting each other as we remembered his Mum in our own little ways. L lived her life surrounded by family and friends and went to sleep Tuesday night having laughed and chatted with her visitors and with great plans for watching Wednesday’s episodes of Emmerdale and Coronation Street. She left us all peacefully, surrounded by love.

We drank a lot of red wine and rode a rollercoaster of emotions over the last week. The most difficult part I’m finding is that the funeral is two weeks afterwards, we go back to work in between and our life settles into a pattern again only to have all the raw emotions re-surface when we actually say our good-byes. I feel so incredibly sad but I guess it’s a part of life’s circle – and a reminder that there are no second chances…

A Red Hot Ferrari of a Weekend…

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This weekend saw my lovely man & I head up to Derbyshire for a long weekend….something we have not done for a while having been caught up in all the day to days of life. The key element of this foray was a Ferrari Drive at Donington Park for Jeremy (a birthday present from moi) at 8.30am on Saturday morning which involved an early-ish start (for a weekend away anyway) from our B&B…we arrived (with lots of other drivers and their ‘fans’) and off Jeremy went for his briefing before we all headed down to the garage – where there were 6 red Ferrari’s parked outside! After a familiarisation lap in a Mini Cooper, Jeremy was first up in an amazing Ferrari 360 – we spectators couldn’t really see the track but I could see him coming into the straight on each of the three laps and you should have heard that engine scream!! Phwoaaarr…I love a man in a Ferrari…grrrr

In the afternoon we drove into the Peak District National Park and went into Blue John Cavern, which is where ‘Blue John’ stone is mined from Nov-Feb each year (mainly used for jewellery). Our guide, one of the miners, took the group of six of us 300ft below the surface to see some absolutely spectacular formations – we were able to see coral and fossils from thousands and thousands of years ago when Britain was at the same ‘sea’ level as Africa too. The trek back up to the entrance was a bit of a challenge for me with the combination of 250 plus narrow steps and the fluctuating oxygen levels (that occur natuarally as a result of the water coming into the caves) but I made it – only to be almost blown away by ferocious (and freezing) winds at the top – windswept can be sexy but this was downright ridiculous! But great to blow away the cobwebs…and then thaw out in the warm car.

Waking up on Sunday morning, we were greeted by beautiful blue skies and decided to head to Crich to visit the Tramway village – if you are into trams this would be fascinating and if it was summer (and the ice cream parlour and the pub were open and serving food) this is probably a good value day out. But by the time we arrived it was rainy, cold and quite blustery (so umbrellas were completely useless) and by the time we’d wandered around for an hour and then had a tram ride up to the top of the hill too see the view, it was snowing! We spent a couple of ‘good-natured’ hours there but felt well-rewarded by a warming pub lunch in Ripley before heading home…

Laugh out loud at Spamalot!

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A busy bank holiday weekend was capped off with a visit to the world of Monty Python last night. In deference to my partner’s love (read wittering on) of Monty Python’s The Holy Grail, I thought this would be a winner of a birthday present for him (despite the fact my only association with anything MP-esque is John Cleese in Fawlty Towers).

Well I grinned from ear to ear the whole way through – that is when I wasn’t laughing out loud. Loved loved loved the twisted end to the quest and thought that the understudy last night did a fab-tastic job as King Arthur. Def. a must see partic. if you are a Monty Python fan…

London’s Congestion Charge

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For those of you who don’t live in the UK, driving into London between certain hours of the day attracts an £8 per day congestion charge.

This was introduced 5 years ago by the then mayor, Ken Livingston in a effort to reduce traffic congestion (and no doubt add some funding to the mayoral purse). Recently there has been much debate on the potential expansion of the Congestion Zone and an increase in the day rate for higher emission vehicles.

I find the public transport system here (with all its foibles) 1000 times better than in my home town of Melbourne (and the parking in London, if you do drive in, is ridiculously expensive) so this has not been an issue that I’ve held any particularly strong views about. However I recently read that since the introduction of the congestion charge, traffic has been cut by 21 percent, cycling has risen by 43 percent and the scheme has been copied by cities such as Singapore and Stockholm – not a bad result.

I also wonder what the congestion charge revenue has been used for….food for thought eh?