It has been 20 years since I'd seen my mum. She lives in Wellingborough in Northampton England and the last time I saw her was in 1990 when she came to Australia to visit for 6 weeks. Back then I was living at Sanctuary Point on NSW's south coast. I was married to Jenny and my daughter Vicki had just turned 3 years old. At the time I was unemployed, having been recently made redundant at the rubber factory in Nowra during the recession. At the time I hadn't seen my mother since I moved out to Australia in 1969 with my adopted parents which included my mother's sister. We got along great and she certainly enjoyed her time out here. Little did I know that it would be 20 years before I would see her again. After settling down in Canberra in 2009 my correspondence to Mum included the invite for her to visit once again. All was arranged for her to come out for two months at the end of 2010.
When Mum was last out here in 1990 I was a member of the local bushfire Brigade and my mother always remembers me constantly being out fighting bushfires that summer. Strange thing was that on this visit, most of my evenings were spent at work and both mum and my house mate Glenyce ended up spending their evenings at the club while I worked to pass the time.
On Friday 3rd December at 8.45am I drove out to Canberra airport on a rather wet morning thinking that when my Mum arrived, she would have thought the plane had taken a 'U-turn' during the flight and landed her back at Heathrow. She was flying to Melbourne then taking a domestic flight to Canberra, the Australian capital city's airport not yet big enough to handle international flights. He plane was due to arrive at 9.35am. After parking my car at the airport car park I made my way to the arrivals lounge. Checking the arrivals board to make sure there were no delays I was surprised to find her flight had landed 10 minutes early. I made my way to the escalator where disembarking passengers made their way out of the airport. I must have waited a good 45 minutes standing around. Had I missed mum coming down the escalator or was she still caught up in the arrivals lounge? It turned out to be the former as most of the large group of people waiting for friends to arrive dispersed I caught the sight of an elderly woman with a baggage trolley making her way towards me. Mum had arrived and we made our way to my car and drove through Canberra to my residence in Charnwood. There I introduced her to my house mate Glenyce and allowed her to settle in. I expected her to crash after the long flight, but mum held out until 8.30pm that night. No mean feat as she had not managed to get any sleep during the long flight out from England.
We suffered constant rain for over the first week mum was out here so most of our time was spent catching up on the past 20 years, watching IQ recorded documentaries off the Foxtel PayTV, DVD movies, most notably the 'Lord Of The Rings' trilogy and films based on Stephen King's books, shopping at Belconnen Mall or visiting Belconnen Soccer Club where I worked. This gave both Mum and Glen a chance to indulge in their favourite pastime of playing the club's poker machines - Mum reread all her favourite Jean M Auel novels (which she had commenced reading on her last visit in 1990) and a couple of my Stephen King books.
On Tuesday 7th December I took Mum to Belconnen Hoyts to watch latest Harry Potter Movie (part one of The Deathly Hallows) after finding out she was a huge Harry Potter fan and owning first editions of all the JK Rowling books. Mum also spent some time helping Glen with her troublesome sewing machine and helped her repair a number of garments. We also found out that mum also loves doing the ironing (Yippee!!!)
Saturday 11th December we drove to the NSW town of Young for Glenyce's grandson's 1st Birthday. a most enjoyable afternoon in the garden enjoying a few drinks and barbecue. We also took in a couple of tourist attractions which included the Big Cherry and Lambing Flat Chinese Memorial Gardens which mum really enjoyed as she likes walking around large interesting gardens. A pity then that we did not have the chance to drive the extra hour to Cowra to visit the Japanese Memorial Gardens that Glen and I enjoyed during our holiday earlier in 2010. We couldn't finish our visit to Young without taking in one of the cherry orchards, especially that it was still cherry season. Mum purchased 5kg of Cherries and we discovered these were her weakness - we half expected the entire box would be nothing but pits by the time we got back to Canberra.
Mum at the Chinese Memorial Gardens near the town of Young in NSW
On Monday 13th December the weather was good enough for us to visit Cockington Green Miniature Village at the Gold Creek Heritage Village not far from where we live. This is located on the Barton Highway north west of Canberra between the Gungahlin Turnoff and the village of Hall. As always this is a great tourist attraction and every year there is always a new miniature added to the collection, but my favourites are still the early models that are based on English places of interest. These include villages, stately homes, castles, windmills, farms, football stadium, railway, canal with barges and even a miniature Stonehenge. The newest area is dedicated to great structures of the world and most countries are featured, even Australia.
Cockington Green Miniature Village at Gold Creek Heritage Village near Canberra
Thursday 16th December - Mum and I drove to the South Coast to visit my daughter Vicki and her husband Royce. We travelled from Canberra to the coast via The Federal Highway then turned onto Macs Reef Road to Bungendore where we sampled the brilliant sausage rolls at the Gunnadoo Bakery, the best sausage rolls you'll ever taste, then on to the village of Tarago before following the back roads to Nerriga via Oallen Ford, then it was along the newly finished sealed Main Road 92 all the way to Nowra, though we also stopped at Tianjara Falls along the way as the falls were in rare full flow after several weeks of rain. We had been invited for lunch at my friends place in North Nowra. Tony and Bev Simmonds are bushwalking friends who I've missed greatly since I moved away from the coast to Canberra, especially the regular walks I did with Tony. After lunch we drove to Sanctuary Point and Vicki's place. The recent storms had caused havoc here again and Vicki's home had been without power for most of the day. Instead, Vicki offered to shout dinner at my favourite restaurant in Vincentia that night. I wasn't going to knock back the excellent fare at the 'Three Gringos' restaurant in Vincentia . As Vicki & Royce were paying for dinner I supplied the BYO Alcohol for the evening. We stayed at Vicki's for the night but had to return home the next morning as I have been called into work to fill a shift. It really didn't matter that we didn't get much chance to look around as the weather again was less than favourable for sightseeing and this also put paid to my plans to take my mum on a short bushwalk to Mount Bushwalker for the excellent views down the Clyde Gorge. Mum was also hoping to get the chance to go for a swim in either St Georges Basin or at Jervis Bay. Hopefully we'll get another chance before mum returns home.
Dinner at the Three Gringo's Mexican Restaurant in Vincentia on the South Coast - L-R, Me, Mum, Vicki and Royce
Wednesday 22nd December - We visited the Australian Dinosaur Museum at Gold Creek Village with Glen and young Caleb from next door. A most enjoyable morning out checking the displays which included fossils and bones and plenty of information for the dinosaur enthusiast. The displays were excellent and even Caleb enjoyed the day out.
Mum at the Dinosaur Museum - Gold Creek Village
Thursday 23rd December was another hot sunny day and we utilised it to visit the Australian War Memorial, a regular event for visitors to Canberra and a brilliant day out browsing through the galleries that feature all the conflicts that have included the Australian military since the beginning of the 20th century. There are galleries dedicated to the Boer War, The Great War of 1914-1918, World War 2, The Korean War and Vietnam and beyond that to present conflicts in The Middle East and Afghanistan. After this we drove the short distance to the top of Mount Ainslie for excellent views of Canberra. Mum and I were then joined by Glen for an evening at Ginninderra Labor club for dinner, pokies, raffles and the popular winners circle.
Mum on top of Mt Ainslie with a view of central Canberra which includes Lake Burlkey Griffin and both the new and old Parliament Houses the National Library to the far right and the High Court building behind mum's left shoulder
25th December 2010. I was not required to work the Christmas Day shift at the club as not only did I have family present, but so too did Glen. Most of the day was spent preparing the food and setting up to accommodate 10 people in our small house. This done while the stereo played a disc of Top 40 Christmas songs. First to arrive mid afternoon was Glen's daughter Belinda and boyfriend Kyle (who was sporting his new 'Mohawk' hairdo, much to the amusement of everyone else in attendance. Then followed by my daughter Vicki and her husband Royce soon followed by Glen's other daughter Desley with partner Dave and one year son Riley. The plan was to hand out and open all Christmas Presents first, with me taking my turn to play Santa, then sit down for our Christmas dinner. Of course nothing went to plan. There were so many presents to open we decided that if we were to wait until all had been handed out we would be eating our meal around 9.00pm, so halfway through we put the presents aside to sit down at the table for a meal of turkey, ham, prawns, oysters, salad and bread, washed down my an assortment of alcoholic beverages and followed by a choice of cheesecake or pavlova before we returned to opening presents. Mum had quite a collection of gifts that included the new Susan Boyle CD, An Australian cookbook, Australian tea towel and coaster set, a floral summer top and chocolates. A great day all round and as usual plenty of food left over.
Christmas Day at the Heath household - Clockwise from left - Dave, Desley, Riley, Belinda, Kyle, Vicki, Royce and Mum
On Thursday 30th December we drove to North Parramatta for our regular Xmas visit to my adopted parents, Norma (mumís sister) & Dave. On the way we stopped off at Goulburn for a late breakfast and to view 'The Big Merino'. Norma and Dave put on a big lunch and we were joined by my daughter Vicki who had driven up from the south coast, and my sister Tracy and her 2 children, Amy and Ben. My brother Chris phoned from Queensland during the day to say hello. A most enjoyable day for all of us.
Mum at the Big Merino at Goulburn
Mum, Glenyce and Norma at North Parramatta
The following morning Mum comes down with a head cold which put her out of action for almost a week, though it didn't stop her from joining Glen at the club while I worked the new years eve shift behind the bar. She wanted to see in the new year with us both, not stuck in a bedroom trying to get rid of a troublesome head cold.
Mum seemed to have recovered by Wednesday 5th January, so we paid a visit to the National Sound And Film Archives and then the nearby National Museum of Australia. The archives were great and had considerably changed since I last visited them. It was the same with the museum which had two special exhibits running. First was the Canning Stock Route with most of the displays dedicated to the aboriginal culture of the area. The second exhibit was dedicated to the voyages of Captain James Cook, who discovered the east coast of Australia in 1770. After a quick lunch in the museum cafeteria we headed into the museum proper and enjoyed several levels of Australian history in a great number of exhibits. I just wish we had more time to stick around and take in so much more.
We still had the problem of a rather wet Australian summer which put paid to a lot of our planned touring. As a result we found ourselves cramming so much in during mum's last 2 weeks here. Of course this wet weather meant we were stuck indoors watching DVD movies such as 'Australia' and 'Clan Of The Cave Bear' and Foxtel recorded programs such as mum's favourite shows such as 'Time Team' and 'Sea Hunters' on the History Channel. Having read all the Jean M Auel books in the collection we have, mum then started on some of my Stephen King collection. The only option left after this was to come along to the club with Glen while I did my evening shifts, either working the bar, Reception and TAB or that evening's Manager on duty. Mum got quite well acquainted with the club's poker machines and even the club promotions of which she managed to get to enjoy and win a couple of times, though she had less luck on the poker machines.
The weather cleared on Sarturday 15th January and we took the opportunity to visit Black Mountain. First stop was the National Botanic Gardens at the base of the mountain. This was my first visit here and I was quite impressed, especially with the rainforest walk which took up quite a large section of the gardens with its wooden walkways and many footbridges crossing over the track. Another highlight was one of the greenhouses that featured carnivorous plants. After visiting the gardens we drove to the top of the mountain to inspect Black Tower - sometimes known as Telstra Tower - it can be seen from most vantage points in Canberra and is the first landmark you notice as you drive into Canberra along the many highways. We took the lift up to the viewing platform, no mean feat considering Mum's terrible head for heights, but she managed. She was quite content to remain behind the glassed in viewing area. There was no way she was going to venture out onto the open air viewing deck. We had 360 degree views all over Canberra from this observation platform and sadly we never got the chance to come up here at night when the views are so much different looking at the night lights of our capital city.
Mum on the rainforest walk in the National Botanic Gardens on Black Mountain - and The Telstra Tower
Mum high up on the viewing platform of Telstra Tower on Black Mountain with Lake Burley Griffin in the background
On 16th January the weather was perfect enough for us to take in the Lake Burley Griffin Cruise, one of the highlights so far. The cruise took us around a section of the lake and our pilot gave us a run down on all the landmarks that can be seen from the water, and there were many. These included the many bridges, Old & New Parliament House, The High Court building, National Library and Archives, the Carillion and the Captain Cook Water Spout were highlights. We followed this up with a walk around Commonwealth Park that included an exhibition of Banzai and in one of the buildings on the foreshore, a history of Canberra.
The Carillion with its Big Ben-like bell on Lake Burley Griffin - taken from the lake cruise boat
The Captain Cook water Spout/Fountain on Lake Burley Griffin
The following morning mum mysteriously pulled a groin muscle which put paid to any activities for close on a week, but late on 24th January we made our second visit to the South Coast to visit Vicki and Royce for a 2 day visit. On the way we stopped at Oallen Ford to view the Shoalhaven River and look at the camping grounds. Once we got to Sanctuary Point we had dinner with Vicki & Royce, then watched one of my hiking DVD's. The next morning, with Vicki & Royce both working or unavailable we took the opportunity to pop in and see one of my bushwalking buddies Jock Findlayson at his home in Erowal Bay and while Jock and I talked hiking, mum sat talking with Jock's wife Meg. Of similar age they both got on exceptionally well to the point where Meg postponed an outing that day. With the perfect blue skies we decided to take full advantage of the conditions and I took mum for swims at Greenfields Beach, Barfleur Beach, on Jervis Bay and Palm Beach at St Georges Basin. She finally got an excuse to get in the water.
Mum about to go for a long awaited swim at Greenfiends Beach on Jervis Bay
With time running out by the 29th January, we drove over to Gold Creek Village again, this time to visit the Reptile house and walkthrough Aviary. this was followed by a drive to Uriarra Crossing. Originally the plans were to visit Mt Stromlo Observatory, however, the road was still closed so we took a drive to Uriarra instead.
The final place we got to visit was on Sunday 30th January when we drove into the city to visit the Old Parliament House - now known as the 'Museum Of Democracy'. This we found most interesting with its political history. We were able to view both the Senate (with its red upholstery) and the House of Representatives (with its green) as well as many of the ministers offices, Prime Minister's Suite, Kings Hall and Press Gallery. The library had examples of newspapers from events throughout Australia's history laid out on tables for the public to read. This was a most enjoyable day.
Old Parliament House and a familar looking green Toyota Rav4 parked outside - Beware of Borstal Boys taking over the running of the government
Mum in the House Of Representatives inside Old Parliament House - and no sign of Prime Minister 'Borstal'
At 6.45pm on Monday 31st January Mum left our place for the final time (on this trip) for the drive to Canberra Airport. Glen was unable to come to see mum off due to thefact she was not feeling well. This was upsetting to both mum and Glen. I stayed with mum until she boarded her plane to Melbourne at 8.20pm, before making my way home. Glen and I both agreed that the house seems somewhat empty afterwards and we both miss her dearly.
It had been a most enjoyable holiday for mum, despite the large amount of wet weather we had put up with this summer, but mum didn't mind. Despite the wet conditions she found the warm temperature much to her liking and she was very sad to be going home again. She got on extremely well with my house mate Glenyce and they became good friends during her stay. There were many places of interest I could not take her to see, we just ran out of time. However, Mum has plans to return in the next couple of years and with this in mind, plans for a driving holiday to Victoria will be organised. In the meantime I can only save up so I can return the favour and go visit her in England before she returns for another holiday.